HOLLYWOOD
Award-winning actor Tom Skerritt, whose career spanned more than six decades and included memorable roles in Top Gun, Alien, MASH*, Steel Magnolias, A River Runs Through It and the television drama Picket Fences, has died at the age of 93. Family members confirmed that Skerritt died of natural causes on October 21, 2026.
Skerritt was widely regarded as one of Hollywood’s most versatile character actors, appearing in more than 170 film and television productions during a career that began in the early 1960s.
Born in Detroit on August 25, 1933, Skerritt served four years in the U.S. Air Force before pursuing an acting career. After making his film debut in War Hunt in 1962, he gained national attention portraying Army surgeon Duke Forrest in Robert Altman’s critically acclaimed 1970 film MASH*.
Skerritt went on to become a familiar face in some of Hollywood’s most celebrated movies. He played Captain Dallas in Ridley Scott’s science-fiction classic Alien in 1979 and later portrayed Commander Mike “Viper” Metcalf, the mentor to Tom Cruise’s Maverick, in the 1986 blockbuster Top Gun.
His film résumé also included major roles in The Dead Zone, Steel Magnolias, Contact, and A River Runs Through It, where he portrayed the father of characters played by Brad Pitt and Craig Sheffer.
On television, Skerritt earned critical acclaim as Sheriff Jimmy Brock in the CBS drama Picket Fences. His performance won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 1993 and helped establish the show as one of television’s most respected dramas of the 1990s.
In a statement released by his family, they remembered Skerritt not only for his professional accomplishments but also for his character and compassion.
“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,” the family said.
Skerritt is survived by his wife Julie, five children, five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
His death marks the loss of one of Hollywood’s most recognizable and enduring performers, whose work entertained audiences across generations and genres.
