Deaths in January 2026

The following is a list of **deaths that should be noted in January 2026**. For deaths that should be noted before the month that the world is in, please see "Months". Names under each date are noted in the order of the alphabet by last name or pseudonym. Deaths of non-humans are noted here also if it is worth noting.

Every entry must have a source. If no reference is included, the death notice will be removed. The following are the requirements of adding a name to the list in its order: name, age, where they came from, what the person is known for, cause of death (if known) and a source.

### 31

- Fitim Makashi, 81, Albanian actor (_The Death of the Horse_, _Rrugicat që kërkonin diell_, _Nga mesi i errësirës_), Merited Artist of Albania.

### 30

- Catherine O'Hara, 71, Canadian-American actress (_Schitt's Creek_, _Home Alone_, _Beetlejuice_), Emmy winner (1982, 2019).
- Demond Wilson, 79, American actor (_Sanford and Son_, _The New Odd Couple_, _Me and the Kid_) and author, complications from cancer.

### 29

- João Canijo, 68, Portuguese film director (_Get a Life_, _Blood of My Blood_, _Bad Living_), heart attack.

### 28

- Bryan Loren, 59, American songwriter ("Do the Bartman").

### 27

- Peter Parfitt, 89, English cricketer.
- Jim Leyland, 81, American baseball player and manager.
- Charlie Griffith, 87, Barbadian cricketer.
- Uli Hoeneß, 74, German footballer and chairman.
- Ottis Anderson, 69, American football player and sportscaster.
- Mick Mills, 77, English footballer and manager.
- Gérson, 85, Brazilian footballer.
- Gunhild Hoffmeister, 81, German runner.
- David Thompson, 71, American basketball player.
- Tony Oliva, 87, Cuban-American baseball player and coach.
- Barry Richards, 80, South African cricketer.
- Russ Jackson, 89, Canadian football player and coach.

### 26

- Sly Dunbar, 73, Jamaican drummer (Sly and Robbie), record producer ("Underneath It All"), and songwriter ("Murder She Wrote").
- Billy Bass Nelson, 74, American Hall of Fame bassist (Funkadelic).

### 25

- Lee Hae-chan, 73, South Korean politician, prime minister (2004–2006), minister of education (1998–1999) and MNA (1988–2020).

### 24

- Michel Barbey, 98, French actor (_Rendezvous in July_, _Three Sailors in a Convent_, _Dominique_).

### 23

- Carlo Cecchi, 86, Italian actor (_His Day of Glory_, _Martin Eden_, _The Red Violin_).
- Yvonne Lime, 90, American actress (_I Was a Teenage Werewolf_, _The Rainmaker_, _Father Knows Best_).
- Anda Zaice, 84, Latvian actress (_Trial on the Road_).

### 21

- Reza Rooygari, 79, Iranian actor (_Eagles_, _The Tenants_, _The Old Bachelor_), heart attack.
- Aleksandr Shavlokhov, 86, South Ossetian politician, prime minister (1996–1998).

### 20

- Norman Gifford, 85, English cricketer (Worcestershire, Warwickshire, national team). (death announced on this date)
- Rob Hirst, 70, Australian musician (Midnight Oil), pancreatic cancer. (death announced on this date)

### 19

- Senka Veletanlić, 89, Bosnian actress (_Svanuće_, _Three_).

### 18

- Valentino Garavani, 93, fashion designer.

### 17

- Roger Allers, 76, American film director (_The Lion King_, _Open Season_) and screenwriter (_Aladdin_).
- Wilbur Wood, 84, American baseball player (Boston Red Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago White Sox).

### 16

- Grant Batty, 74, New Zealand rugby union player (Wellington, Bay of Plenty, national team).
- János Koltai, 90, Hungarian actor and director (_The Round-Up_, _Ten Thousand Days_, _Szomszédok_).
- Melpo Zarokosta, 92, Greek actress (_Maiden's Cheek_, _A Matter of Earnestness_).

### 15

- Kenny Morris, 68, English drummer (Siouxsie and the Banshees). (death announced on this date)

### 14

- Igor Zolotovitskiy, 64, Russian actor (_Taxi Blues_, _Luna Park_, _Composition for Victory Day_), theater teacher and television director.

### 13

- Scott Adams, 68, American cartoonist (_Dilbert_) and political commentator, prostate cancer.
- Lina Bernardi, 87, Italian actress (_The Story of Piera_, _The Last Kiss_, _The Embalmer_).
- George Vassiliou, 94, Cypriot politician, president of Cyprus (1988–1993).

### 12

- Mohammad Ilyas, 79, Pakistani cricketer (Lahore, Pakistan International Airlines, national team), cancer.
- Catherine Samie, 92, French actress (_Lovers of Paris_, _The Old Maid_, _They Came Back_).

### 10

- Erich von Däniken, 90, Swiss author
- Derek Martin, 92, English actor (_Law & Order_, _Eldorado_, _EastEnders_)
- Bob Weir, 78, American Hall of Fame musician (Grateful Dead), lung issues. (death announced on this date)

### 9

- , 75, French writer.
- Andrés Caniulef, 48, Chilean journalist, heart attack.
- Beatriz González, 93, Colombian artist.
- Hans Herrmann, 97, German racing driver (Formula One).
- Khawlhring Lalremruata, 38, Indian cricketer (Mizoram), heart attack.
- , 59, Russian biathlete.
- , 82, Spanish politician.
- , 75, Taiwanese politician.
- Vincenzo Zarri, 96, Italian Roman Catholic prelate, auxiliary bishop of Bologna (1976–1988) and bishop of Forlì-Bertinoro (1988–2005).

### 8

- Murat Bisembin, 53, Kazakh actor, cancer.
- Loraine Braham, 87, Australian politician, member (1994–2008) and speaker (1997–1999, 2001–2005) of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly. (death announced on this date)
- Heloísa de Carvalho, 56, Brazilian writer and political activist, suicide.
- Conrado Corsalette, 47, Brazilian journalist.
- Mieczysław Czerniawski, 77, Polish politician, MP (1989–1991, 1993–2005).
- Jim Furlong, 85, Canadian football player (Calgary Stampeders).
- Sergio Goizauskas, 69, Argentine-born French cartoonist.
- Vijay Singh Gond, 68, Indian politician, Uttar Pradesh MLA (1980–2007, since 2024), kidney failure.
- Heber Jentzsch, 90, American Scientology executive (Church of Scientology International), actor and journalist (_Los Angeles Free Press_). (death announced on this date)
- , 96, Chinese academian.
- Philippe Junot, 85, French venture capitalist and property developer.
- Madalitso Kazombo, 46, Malawian politician, first deputy speaker of the National Assembly (2019–2025), asthma attack.
- , 81, Portuguese actress (_Sabor da Paixão_,_Morangos com Açúcar_,_A Impostora_).
- , 51, Russian politician.
- , 75, Italian marathon and middle-distance runner.
- Hiroshi Nakamura, 93, Japanese surrealist painter, pancreatic cancer.
- Astrid Roemer, 78, Surinamese-Dutch writer and teacher.
- Uljana Semjonova, 73, Latvian basketball player, Olympic champion (1976, 1980).
- Sir Tim Shadbolt, 78, New Zealand politician, mayor of Waitemata City (1983–1989) and Invercargill (1993–1995, 1998–2022).
- Meinam Bhorot Singh, 75, Indian politician, Manipur MLA (2002–2007).
- Terry Yorath, 75, Welsh football player (Leeds United, national team) and manager (national team).

### 7

- Madjoulba Batocfetou, Togolese agronomic engineer.
- James Bernard, American music journalist and magazine editor (_The Source_, _XXL_). (death announced on this date)
- Ihor Blazhkov, 89, Ukrainian conductor.
- Albert Bourgi, 90, French jurist.
- Raffaella Bragazzi, 66, Italian television presenter and radio host.
- Camilo Isaac Chavarría, 27, Panamanian model (Mister Panamá) and reality show contestant (_Calle 7_), heart attack.
- Martin Chivers, 80, English footballer (Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, national team).
- Ángel Coerezza, 92, Argentine football referee (AFA).
- Hiroya Ebina, 67, Japanese politician, mayor of Kushiro (2008–2024), member of the Hokkaido Legislative Assembly