Actor Ed Gale, best known for his roll as Chucky in the Child's Play film series, has died at the age of 61, a source with knowledge of the situation confirmed to TMZ.

Gale reportedly died while in hospice care in Los Angeles, the source confirmed. Kayse Gale, who said she was Ed's niece, also confirmed his passing in a post shared on her Facebook account.

"It is with a heavy heart and a surprisingly light coffin (see what I did there?) that we announce the sudden passing of our uncle, Ed Gale, has taken his final bow and is now headlining in the afterlife," she wrote.

Kayse referenced her uncle's acting career, which included roles in more than 130 films, television shows and commercials.

“With this wide ranging body of work, he leaves behind legacy full of questionable lighting and amazing one-liners," she wrote.

“Ed’s favorite role was that of the ‘fun uncle.’ His love language was sharing his love of the entertainment industry and the magic of Hollywood with his nieces," she added.

Gale, who was born with dwarfism, made his film debut as the title character in Howard the Duck in 1986 before taking on the role of Chucky in the original Child's Play two years later, a role he reprised in the sequels Child's Play 2 in 1990 and Bride of Chucky in 1998. Other film roles included Spaceballs, The Jungle Book and Tiptoes, as well as starring in the children's show Land of the Lost in the 1990s and appearances on Weird Science, Family Matters, Sabrina the Teenage Witch and My Name Is Earl.

Jeffrey T. Mason