Chuck Norris, martial arts master and actor whose toughness became
internet lore, dies at 86
[March 21, 2026]
By JONATHAN MATTISE
Chuck Norris, the martial arts grandmaster and action star whose roles
in “Walker, Texas Ranger” and other television shows and movies made him
an iconic tough guy — sparking internet parodies and adoration from
presidents — has died at 86.
Norris died Thursday, in what his family described as a “sudden
passing.”
“While we would like to keep the circumstances private, please know that
he was surrounded by his family and was at peace,” the family said in a
statement posted to social media.
Before he would become a star in movies and on TV, Norris was wildly
successful in competitive martial arts. He was a six-time undefeated
World Professional Middleweight Karate champion. He also founded his own
Korean-based American hard style of karate, known sometimes as Chun Kuk
Do, and the United Fighting Arts Federation, which has awarded more than
3,300 Chuck Norris System black belts worldwide. Black Belt magazine
ultimately credited Norris in its hall of fame with holding a 10th
degree black belt, the highest possible honor.
Born Carlos Ray Norris in Ryan, Oklahoma, on March 10, 1940, he grew up
poor. At age 12, he moved with his family to Torrance, California, and
joined the U.S. Air Force after high school, in 1958. It was during a
deployment to Korea that he started training in martial arts, including
judo and Tang Soo Do.
“I went out for gymnastics and football at North Torrance high,” he told
The Associated Press in 1982. “I played some football, but I also spent
a lot of time on the bench. I was never really athletic until I was in
the service in Korea.”
After he was honorably discharged in 1962, he worked as a file clerk for
Northrop Aircraft and applied to be a police officer, but was put on a
waitlist. Meanwhile, he opened a martial arts studio, which expanded to
a chain, with students including such stars as Bob Barker, Priscilla
Presley, Donny and Marie Osmond, and Steve McQueen, whom he later
credited with encouraging him to get into acting.
From one studio to another
Norris made his film debut as an uncredited bodyguard in the 1968 movie
“The Wrecking Crew,” which included a fight with Dean Martin. He had
also crossed paths with Bruce Lee in martial arts circles. Their
friendship — sometimes, as sparring partners — led to an iconic faceoff
in the 1972 movie “Return of the Dragon,” in which Lee fights and kills
Norris' character in Rome's Colosseum.
He went on to act in more than 20 movies, such as “Missing in Action,”
“The Delta Force” and “Sidekicks.”
“I wanted to project a certain image on the screen of a hero. I had seen
a lot of anti-hero movies in which the lead was neither good nor bad.
There was no one to root for,” Norris said in 1982.
In 1993, he took on his most famed role, as a crime-fighting lawman in
TV's “Walker, Texas Ranger.” The show ran for nine seasons, and in 2010,
then-Gov. Rick Perry awarded him the title of honorary Texas Ranger. The
Texas Senate later named him an honorary Texan.
“It’s not violence for violence’s sake, with no moral structure,” Norris
told the AP in 1996, speaking about the show. “You try to portray the
proper meaning of what it’s about — fighting injustice with justice,
good vs. bad. … It’s entertaining for the whole family.”
Norris also made a surprise comedic appearance as a decisive judge in
the final match of the 2004 movie “Dodgeball.” He only on occasion had
taken acting roles in recent years, including 2012's “The Expendables 2”
and the 2024 sci-fi action movie “Agent Recon.” He's due to appear in
“Zombie Plane,” an upcoming film starring Vanilla Ice.
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Chuck Norris speaks to reporters during a media availability before
the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series auto race at Texas Motor Speedway in
Fort Worth, Texas, on Nov. 6, 2016. (AP Photo/Larry Papke, File)
 Chuck Norris: the man, the meme,
the legend
It was around the time of “Dodgeball” that his toughman image became
the stuff of legend, literally: “Chuck Norris Facts” went viral
online with such wildly hyperbolic statements as, “Chuck Norris had
a staring contest with the sun — and won,” and, “They wanted to put
Chuck Norris on Mt. Rushmore, but the granite wasn’t tough enough
for his beard.”
Norris ultimately embraced the absurdity of the meme craze, putting
together “The Official Chuck Norris Fact Book,” which combined his
favorites with supposedly true stories and the codes he aimed to
live by. He would also write books on martial arts instruction, a
memoir, political takes, Civil War-era historical fiction and more.
“To some who know little of my martial arts or film careers but
perhaps grew up with ‘Walker, Texas Ranger,’ it seems that I have
become a somewhat mythical superhero icon,” Norris wrote in the
forward to the “Fact Book.” “I am flattered and humbled.”
That book raised money for a nonprofit he founded with President
George H.W. Bush that promoted martial arts instruction for kids.
The intentionally outlandish statements featured in the 2008
Republican presidential primary, when Norris endorsed Arkansas Gov.
Mike Huckabee and shot an ad playing on the “Chuck Norris facts.”
“Chuck Norris doesn’t endorse. He tells America how it’s going to
be,” Huckabee said in the campaign ad.
President Donald Trump's supporters later promoted “Trump Facts” in
the same vein, and political pundits tried it as well, describing
the commander-in-chief's decision to seize Venezuela's sitting
president, Nicolas Maduro, as a “Chuck Norris Moment,” and its
initial effect on oil prices a “Chuck Norris Premium.”
Norris was outspoken about his Christian beliefs and his support for
gun rights, and backed political candidates for years — he even went
skydiving with Bush for the former president's 80th birthday. As for
Trump, Norris endorsed him in the 2016 general election and wrote
guest columns praising him without explicitly endorsing him in the
days before the 2020 and 2024 elections.
Norris is survived by five children: stunt performers Mike and Eric
with his late ex-wife Dianne Holechek, twins Dakota and Danilee with
his wife Gena Norris, and Dina, the result of an early 1960s
“one-night stand” revealed in his autobiography.
Norris celebrated his birthday just over a week before his death,
posting a sparring video on Instagram.
“I don't age. I level up,” he wrote.
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