Entertainment · October 20, 2026
RIP Ann Hornaday, a Newspaper Film Critic Survivor
Ann Hornaday, a prominent and respected film critic who spent 23 years at The Washington Post, died on October 18, 2026, at the age of 66. Her family confirmed that she passed away at her home in Baltimore due to glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. A 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalist, Hornaday was celebrated for her accessible, unpretentious prose and her commitment to film literacy, exemplified by her 2017 book 'Talking Pictures: How to Watch Movies'. Before joining the Post in 2002, she worked for Ms. Magazine, the Austin American-Statesman, and the Baltimore Sun. She had recently taken a buyout from the Post in 2025 and had completed a manuscript about the filming of 'All the President’s Men' prior to her death.
Read the original coverage
- IndieWireTrade
RIP Ann Hornaday, a Newspaper Film Critic Survivor
Read at IndieWire ↗ - VarietyTrade
Ann Hornaday, Longtime Washington Post Film Critic and Pulitzer Prize Finalist, Dies at 66
Read at Variety ↗ Ann Hornaday, Longtime Washington Post Film Critic, Dies at 66
Read at The Hollywood Reporter ↗
Reported by multiple outlets
- Ann Hornaday died at age 66 on Sunday, October 18, 2026.
- The cause of death was glioblastoma, a form of brain cancer.
- She was a film critic at The Washington Post for 23 years, joining in 2002 and leaving in 2025.
- She was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for criticism in 2008.
- She authored the book 'Talking Pictures: How to Watch Movies' (2017).
- She completed a book about the movie 'All the President’s Men' to be published posthumously in 2028.
- She graduated from Smith College in 1982.
Reported by only some outlets
- IndieWire notes she was the personal assistant to Gloria Steinem at Ms. Magazine.
- The Hollywood Reporter mentions she met her husband during a journalism fellowship in Athens, Georgia.
- IndieWire reports her birth mother was Mary Mills and her father was urologist William R. Hornaday Jr.
- The Hollywood Reporter notes she appeared on WYPR’s 'Midday at the Movies' program.
Confirmed
- Ann Hornaday died at 66 from glioblastoma.
- She worked at The Washington Post from 2002 to 2025.
- She was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2008.
- A posthumous book on 'All the President's Men' will be released in 2028.
Reported
- She died at her home in North Baltimore. (The Hollywood Reporter)
- She graduated with a degree in government. (The Hollywood Reporter)
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