The horror community was shocked last night when news outlets began reporting that Silvio Horta was found dead in Miami at the age of 45. However, as the story began to unfold, authorities began investigating his death as a potential suicide. The news of his passing has been confirmed by his agent, but the official cause of death is still unreleased to the public; though many are saying it was due to a self-inflicted gunshot.
Silvio Horta is most known to horror fans as the writer behind 1998’s Urban Legend. The movie was a small box office success story, and perhaps launched Tara Reid’s career into the genre. Due to its success, it was quickly followed up with sequels Urban Legends: Final Cut and Urban Legends: Bloody Mary; the first of which was also written by Horta. His contributions to horror and scifi continued with “The Chronicle” in 2001 and “Jake 2.0” from 2003 to 2004; both of which saw Horta behind the scenes as writer and executive producer.
His biggest accomplishment, though, was as the creator, writer and executive producer of “Ugly Betty.” The show, which starred America Ferrera, ran for four seasons and won 2 Golden Globes. Horta himself was nominated for an Emmy in 2007 thanks to his work on the show. His last broadcast creation was The Curse of the Fuentes Women in 2015.
If you or someone you know is dealing with depression and suicidal thoughts, please call the Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-8255 or visit https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/.
All of us here at HorrorSociety send our condolences to his family, friends and fans.
R.I.P. Silvio Horta
August 14th 1974 to January 7th 2020
