Fears for British actor missing after California mountain hike

Julian Sands, known for roles in A Room with a View and Arachnophobia, is believed lost in terrible weather.

British actor Julian Sands in 2013. Picture: AFP

Julian Sands, the British actor known for roles in A Room with a View and Arachnophobia, was feared dead on Friday after failing to return from a hike in Southern California.

He was reported missing by a friend a week ago. He had been hiking in the area of Mt Baldy, a 3000m peak about 80km east of Los Angeles, according to the San Bernardino County sheriff’s department.

Sands, 65, who lives in North Hollywood, was believed to be near the Baldy Bowl Trail, a popular hiking spot in the San Gabriel Mountains. It is understood that his son, Henry, 37, was in California helping with the search.

A silver Volvo believed to ­belong to Sands was found on Wednesday night, covered in snow.

Powerful storms that have hit Southern California in recent weeks have made conditions in the area extremely dangerous. Two hikers have died there in the past month.

Rescuers began searching for Sands soon after the alarm was raised but the operation was paused on Saturday night, about 24 hours after it began, due to the condition of the trail and the risk of avalanches.

The search with helicopters and drones is continuing as weather conditions allow, and the ground search will resume when it is safe, the sheriff’s ­department said.

Sands starred opposite Helena Bonham Carter in the 1985 Oscar-winning adaptation of A Room with a View. He also played journalist Jon Swain in the 1984 film The Killing Fields about the atrocities of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. His other film credits include Leaving Las Vegas in 1995. He has also appeared on television, including on the Superman series Smallville and 24 starring Kiefer ­Sutherland.

The Times