Original ‘Karate Kid’ Actor Dead at 80

Prolific character actor and Karate Kid star Peter Jason has died at 80. Jason’s death was reported on Thursday by some of his former colleagues, including Halloween director John Carpenter and Titanic star Billy Zane, and later confirmed by multiple outlets. A cause of death was not immediately announced.

Jason was a ubiquitous actor who appeared in nearly 300 productions throughout his 57-year career. "Peter Jason, one of the great character actors in cinema, has died," Carpenter wrote Feb. 20 on X. "His first movie was Howard Hawks' Rio Lobo (1970). He was a dear friend, and I'll miss him terribly."

Jason worked with Carpenter on seven films, including Prince of Darkness (1987); They Live (1988); Village of the Damned (1996); and Ghosts of Mars (2001). The actor also had notable roles in 48 Hours (1982); the original Karate Kid (1984); The Hunt for Red October (1990); Arachnophobia (1990); Mortal Kombat (1995); Adaptation (2002); and Seabiscuit (2003). Later in his career, Jason was a regular on Deadwood, playing card dealer-turned-sheriff Con Stapleton in the series and reprising the role for a 2019 feature film. He had smaller roles in Bobcat Goldthwait’s Bigfoot horror Willow Creek (2013); the Coen Bros. comedy Hail, Caesar! (2016); and the blockbuster sequel Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018). He also lent his distinctive voice to the Gears of War series. His final role was in the 2022 feature We Are Gathered Here Today.

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Zane posted a heartfelt memoriam to Jason on Instagram alongside several photos of the actors together, one of which showed them posing together on a gold course. “My dear, dear friend, the brightest light, most generous soul and gregarious of men, the supremely talented and kind Peter Jason has left the set," Zane wrote. "Survived by his lovely wife Eileen and his children, the vacuum felt by his passing gut punched me as I saw it coming…All I know is his wake will be widely attended by and teeter somewhere between a Friar’s Roast to a burial at sea befitting an admiral. See you on the back nine, my friend! R.I.P. PJ.”