‘Aliens’ actor Jay Benedict dead at 68 due to coronavirus complications
Actor Jay Benedict, known for his roles in “Aliens” and “The Dark Knight Rises,” has died at age 68 due to complications from COVID-19.
“It is with profound sorrow that we must announce Jay’s death on the 4th of April due to complications arising from a COVID-19 infection,” a message on the actor’s website reads.
Representatives for Benedict did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.
Many may remember Benedict from the 1986 hit film “Aliens,” where he worked alongside Carrie Henn and Sigourney Weaver. However, his most memorable role may be his multiple appearances as John Kieffer – the US Army officer and friend of Christopher Foyle – in “Foyle’s War.”
His “Emmerdale” co-star, Vicki Michelle, took to Twitter to honor Benedict after hearing news of his death.
“Shocked to hear one of our most brilliant actors and kind lovely man Jay Benedict has passed. Married to my lovely friend Phoebe Scholfield #AlloAllo My heart goes out to her and her family at this sad time,” she wrote.
In addition to his work on the screen, Benedict had a long and storied career in theater, with his website noting that he played “almost every male role in ‘The Rocky Horror Picture Show’ in the early 1970s (given half a chance, he’d probably have had a crack at the female ones, too …).”
Recent theater roles include Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous in a play for the Outside Edge Theatre Company, “One Day At A Time;” David, a critic in Steven Berkoff’s “An Actor’s Lament;” and Archie Bellows in “The Trial of Jane Fonda.”
Benedict was born in California but his family quickly moved him to Europe, where he spent most of his life. As a result of his travel, his website notes that he was bilingual in English and French and could speak Spanish and German as well. His talents also included running a business. He and his wife, Phoebe Scholfield, started the company Sync or Swim, which provides post-production ADR (Automated Dialogue Replacement) services to the film and television industry.
In addition to his work on stage and screen, Benedict lent his voice to a number of documentaries as well as video games over the years including “Miami Vice,” “Broken Sword: The Sleeping Dragon” and “MindJack.”
As of Friday afternoon, the novel coronavirus has infected more than 1,076,017 people across 180 countries and territories, resulting in over 58,004 deaths. In the U.S., all 50 states plus the District of Columbia have reported confirmed cases of COVID-19, tallying over 261,438 illnesses and at least 6,699 deaths.
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