Tom Skerritt, 'Alien' and 'Top Gun' star, dies aged 93
Tom Skerritt, who played Captain Dallas in 'Alien', Viper in 'Top Gun' and Sheriff Jimmy Brock in 'Picket Fences', has died of natural causes aged 93, his family has confirmed.
Tom Skerritt, the veteran American actor whose career ranged from the doomed captain of the Nostromo in Alien to the steely flight instructor Viper in Top Gun, has died aged 93. CNN
The news was confirmed via Skerritt’s publicist Susan Madore, who sent a family statement saying he died on Wednesday of natural causes. CNN USA Today
Born in Detroit on 25 August 1933, Skerritt served in the US Air Force before becoming an actor. Reuters His breakthrough came as Duke Forrest in Robert Altman’s 1970 war comedy M*A*S*H, alongside Donald Sutherland and Elliott Gould. Reuters Nine years later he played Captain Dallas in Ridley Scott’s sci-fi horror classic Alien (1979), and in 1986 he was Commander Mike “Viper” Metcalf opposite Tom Cruise in Top Gun. USA Today EW
On television, Skerritt starred as Sheriff Jimmy Brock in CBS’s Picket Fences from 1992 to 1996, winning the 1993 Primetime Emmy Award for outstanding lead actor in a drama series. TheWrap
The family statement described him as “a loving husband to Julie” and father of five children, adding: “We are heartbroken by his loss… While the world knew Tom through his remarkable acting career, we knew him for his humor, curiosity, wisdom, generosity and the love he brought into our lives.” EW His most recent screen credit came in the 2025 film Broke. CNN
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