Award-winning actor Tom Skerritt, best known for playing Captain Arthur Koblenz Dallas, commander of the ill-fated Nostromo in Alien (1979) has died at the age of 93. A gifted and prolific actor, Skerritt appeared in nearly 200 film and television productions between 1962 and 2025.

Thomas Roy Skerritt was born August 25, 1933 in Detroit, Michigan. He passed away October 21, 2026, in Seattle, Washington, surrounded by family. He was married three times and had five children.

SciFi, Fantasy, & Horror Roles

Mentored by Robert Altman in ‘M*A*S*H,’ the Emmy-winning actor later stood out in ‘Top Gun,’ ‘The Turning Point’ and ‘A River Runs Through It.’

His scifi career began in 1963 with an appearance in The Alfred Hitchcock Hour and continued until 2019, when he voiced a trucker in The Phantom 52. He was the only actor in both the movie The Dead Zone and an episode of the television series based on it.

• 1963 Frank Farmer in The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, episode “Run for Doom”
• 1964 Dr. Edgar Edgarton in My Favorite Martian, episode “Miss Jekyll and Hyde”
• 1965 Frank Richardson in Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, episode “The Enemies”
• ll1966 Matthew Gebhardt in Time Tunnel, episode “The Death Trap”
• Senator Palmer in Kolchak: The Night Stalker, episode “The Devil’s P;atform”
• Sheriff Bannerman in The Dead Zone (1083)
• Captain Arthur Dallas in Alien (1979)
• Sheriff Bannerman in The Dead Zone (1083)
• Bach Bergstrom in Space Camp (1983)
• Setective Frank Sheen in The hitchhiker, episode “True Believer”
• 1986 Alex Mattingly in The Twilight Zone, episode “What Are Friends For?”
• Dr. Drumlin in Contact (1997)
• Fred Maddix in The Hunt for the Unicorn Killer (1999)
• The Dead Zone, episode “Senoument”
• Gabe Utterson in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (2008)

Other Roles

• Duke Forrest in M*A*S*H (1970)
• Rev. Maclean in A River Runs Through It (1976)
• Strawberry in Cheech & Chong’s IUp in Smoke (1978)
• Rvsn Drake in Cheers, six episodes
• Flight instrutor Cmdr. Mike “Viper” Marshall in Top Gun (1986)
• Sheriff Brock in Picket Fences
• Jimmy Ford on Leverage (for which he won a Saturn Award for Best Guest Performance in a TV Show)
• Ben Givens in Last of the Mohicans (2021)

Awards & Honors

Skerrit appeared in six films selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant”, including M*A*S*H (1970), Harold and Maude (1971), Up in Smoke (1978), Alien (1979), Top Gun (1986) and Smoke Signals (1998). Two of his films were nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. These were M*A*S*H and The Turning Point.

In 2022, Skerritt  received the International Press Academy’s honorary Mary Pickford Award for “Outstanding Artistic Contribution to the Entertainment Industry”. In 2025, he was presented a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Staten Island Summer of Shorts International Film Festival. For his work in Picket Fences, he won two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe awards. In 2012 he won the Saturn Award for playing Jimmy Ford, father of Nate Ford on Leverage. Hr was nominated for a Satellite Award for his work in East of the Mountains (2021).

Personal Life

In addition to being a busy actor, Sherrit was founder and chairman of Heyou Media, a digital media company. Dter graduating from McKenie High School in Detroit, he enlisted in the United States Air Force. After he serving honorably for four years, he attended Henry Ford College and Wayne State University, and eventually transferred to UCLA.

He left the UCLA without graduating in order to pursue an acting career, which he did, very successfully. Skerritt was co-founder, with Captain Evan Bailey, of the Red Badge Project, a nonprofit storytelling program for wounded warriors, especially those wiyth PTSD, helping them rebuild self worth, find their voice, and connect with their communities through creative expression.

Skerritt was married to Charlotte Shanks from 1967 to 1972, a marriage that gave them three children. His next marriage was to Sue Oran from 1977 to 1992, and they had one son together. Then in 1996, he married Julie Tokashiki, and they had one daughter together.

To his widow and children and their families, we offer our comfort and condolences.

Skerritt had a long, full career, admired by fans and respected by his peers. Thank you foryour service, Airman Skerritt anf for your many hours of entertainmrnt.

• 30 –