John Ashton, the veteran character actor who memorably performed the gruff however lovable police detective John Taggart within the “Beverly Hills Cop” movies, has died. He was 76.
Ashton died Thursday in Fort Collins, Colorado, his household introduced in an announcement launched by Ashton’s supervisor, Alan Somers, on Sunday. No reason behind demise was instantly accessible.
In a profession that spanned greater than 50 years, Ashton was a daily face throughout TV sequence and movies, together with “Midnight Run,” “Little Big League” and “Gone Baby Gone.”
But within the “Beverly Hills Cop” movies, Ashton performed a necessary a part of an indelible trio. Though Eddie Murphy’s Axel Foley, a Detroit detective following a case in Los Angeles, was the lead, the 2 native detectives — Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and Ashton’s Taggart — have been Axel’s typically reluctant, typically keen collaborators.
Of the three, Taggart — “Sarge” to Billy — was the extra fearful, by-the-book detective. But he would repeatedly be coaxed into Axel’s plans. Ashton co-starred within the first two movies, starting with the 1984 unique, and returned for the the Netflix reboot, “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F,” launched earlier this 12 months.
Ashton performed a extra unscrupulous character in Martin Brest’s 1988 buddy comedy “Midnight Run.” He was the rival bounty hunter additionally pursuing Charles Grodin’s needed accountant in “The Duke” whereas he is within the custody of Robert De Niro’s Jack Walsh.
Speaking in July to Collider, Ashton recalled auditioning with De Niro.
“Bobby started handing me these matches, and I went to grab the matches, and he threw them on the floor and stared at me,” stated Ashton. “I looked at the matches, and I looked up, and I said, ‘F—- you,’ and he said, ‘F—- you, too.’ I said, ‘Go —- yourself.’ I know every other actor picked those up and handed it to him, and I found out as soon as I left he went, ‘I want him,’ because he wanted somebody to stand up to him.”
Ashton is survived by his spouse, Robin Hoye, of 24 years, two kids, three stepchildren, a grandson, two sisters and a brother.
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