“Beverly Hills Cop” actor John Ashton dies at 76

“It probably saved my life,” he said.

Mr. Ashton began his career primarily as a stage actor in the 1960s. His critically acclaimed performance as Lee in Sam Shepard's “True West” with Ed Harris at the South Coast Repertory Theater in Costa Mesa, Calif., in 1981 eventually landed him an audition for “Beverly Hills Cop,” he said.

After “Beverly Hills Cop II,” Mr. Ashton played bounty hunter Marvin Dorfler opposite Robert De Niro in the 1988 action comedy “Midnight Run.” Mr. Ashton said De Niro personally chose him for the role after the two filmed a scene together. That same year, Mr. Ashton appeared in “She's Getting a Baby,” a film about young newlyweds, marriage and family, starring Kevin Bacon and Elizabeth McGovern. Other film credits include “Some Kind of Wonderful,” “Little Big League,” “Instinct,” “Gone Baby Gone,” “Uncle John,” “All Happy Families” and “Once Upon a River.”

In 1989, Mr. Ashton took a leading role in a television series, playing Charlie Battles on the NBC series “Hardball,” a show about a veteran cop who teams up with a young hotshot. It only lasted one season. Other television appearances included “The Twilight Zone,” “The A-Team,” “Police Squad!”, “EastEnders,” “Brookside” and “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.”

Mr. Ashton is survived by his wife, Robin Hoye; his sisters Sharon Ann Ashton and Linda Jean Ashton; his brother, Edward Richard Ashton Jr.; his children, Michelle Ashton and Michael Thomas Ashton; and his grandson Henry.

Speaking to MovieJunk in 2020, Mr. Ashton, whose film “Once Upon a River” had just opened, said he was far from done with Hollywood.

“I enjoy my work,” he said. “Someone asked me, 'When are you retiring?' I said, “Where to?” When I'm working I love what I do and when I'm not working I play golf. So why the hell should I retire? I won't retire. I’ll never retire.”