Tom Skerritt Dies at 93: Alien and Top Gun Actor's Career Spanned Six Decades
Tom Skerritt, the actor known for Alien and Top Gun, has died at the age of 93. His publicist said he died of natural causes.
Tom Skerritt Dies at 93: Alien and Top Gun Actor's Career Spanned Six Decades
Tom Skerritt dies at 93: the actor known for Alien and Top Gun, whose publicist confirmed natural causes as the reason, is remembered by his family beyond the screen in a statement shared with People.
we knew him for his humor, curiosity, wisdom, generosity, and the love he brought into our lives.
Over a career spanning more than 60 years, Skerritt gathered more than 170 big and small screen credits, an Emmy win, and Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild nominations.
From War Hunt to M*A*S*H
After a four-year tour of duty in the US air force, Skerritt made his big-screen debut in the 1962 war film War Hunt, appearing alongside Robert Redford and Sydney Pollack. His breakout came in 1970 with Robert Altman's hit satire M*A*S*H, a box office success that earned a best picture Oscar nomination.
Through the 1970s he kept working across genres, appearing in the cult black comedy Harold and Maude, Altman's crime drama Thieves Like Us, Big Bad Mama and The Turning Point.
Alien, a Film He First Turned Down
Skerritt closed the decade with Ridley Scott's smash hit Alien, though he had earlier declined the role because of the film's low budget. Looking back in 2019, he explained his hesitation.
At two million bucks and with other actors that I don't know about, this is a film that could have been directed by Ed Wood.
Top Gun Doubts and the Picket Fences Emmy
The Top Gun role nearly slipped away from him. In a 2021 interview with Vulture, Skerritt recalled the reservations about casting him.
There was some question about me playing that role because I was … I think they used the word, laconic.
He said the doubts angered him, and he confronted producer Don Simpson, telling him: "You're going to get what you need."
The 1980s brought roles in David Cronenberg's The Dead Zone, the sci-fi adventure SpaceCamp, horror sequel Poltergeist III and Steel Magnolias. In the 1990s he reunited with Robert Redford for A River Runs Through It and starred with Jodie Foster in Contact, among other credits including Poison Ivy and The Other Sister. He also received an Emmy for his role in David E Kelley's family drama Picket Fences, which ran four seasons.
Later Work and the Red Badge Project
In the 2000s Skerritt starred with Bruce Willis in Tears of the Sun and with Kate Beckinsale in Whiteout, and appeared on Will & Grace, The West Wing and Brothers & Sisters.
Beyond acting, he turned to service for veterans:
- In 2012 he co-founded the Red Badge Project, an initiative to help veterans process their PTSD through storytelling.
- He told CBS News: "I just got tired of talking about this if I could do something about it."
His last film role came in the 2025 western drama Broke, alongside Dennis Quaid.
