LOS ANGELES — Michael Madsen, whose menacing characters in “Reservoir Dogs” and “Kill Bill” made him a standout in Quentin Tarantino’s films, has died. He was 66.

Madsen was found unresponsive in his home in Malibu, California, on Thursday and was declared dead from what appeared to be cardiac arrest, his manager Ron Smith said.

Madsen’s career spanned more than 300 credits stretching back to the early 1980s, many in low budget films. But his most memorable screen moment may have been the sadistic torture of a captured police officer — while dancing to Stealers Wheel’s “Stuck in the Middle with You” — as Mr. Blonde in 1992’s “Reservoir Dogs.”

He would become a Tarantino regular, appearing in the “Kill Bill” films and “The Hateful Eight.”