Vesa-Matti Loiri made his name as an actor who mastered both drama and comedy.
Perhaps his most famous portrayal is the clown character Uuno Turhapuro, over the years twenty Turhapuro films have been produced.
Loiri appeared in over 100 films and television series during his career.
His last film role was in Mika Kaurismäki's drama-comedy "Mestari Cheng" from 2019.
As a musician, he has, among other things, released a disc with Carl Michael Bellman's songs translated into Finnish and in 1980 he participated in the Eurovision song contest.
He also did the Finnish voice for the genie in the Disney film Aladdin.
Finnish President Sauli Niinistö writes in a post on Twitter that Vesa-Matti Loiri was "the greatest of the greats" and that he has deeply touched the soul of the Finnish people.