Fred Ward, 'The Right Stuff,' 'Remo Williams,' 'Tremors' Star, Dies at 79

Fred Ward, the ruggedly handsome, versatile star of everything from action-adventure to Robert Altman films, has died. He was 79.

His publicist, Ron Hofmann, confirmed Ward's death on May 8 to NPR without offering a cause.

Hofmann wrote in an email to the outlet, "The unique thing about Fred Ward is that you never knew where he was going to pop up, so unpredictable were his career choices."

Born December 30, 1942, in San Diego, he made his film debut on TV in Italy in 1973 following a stint in the Air Force.

A boxer and lumberjack between gigs, he made his U.S. debut in "Hearts of the West" (1975) and had his first significant part in Clint Eastwood's "Escape from Alcatraz" (1979).

He played tough guys with ease, including in such films as "Timerider: The Adventure of Lyle Swann" (1982), "Uncommon Valor" (1983), the cult-favorite action flick "Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins" (1985), and in the horror series "Tremors" (1990, 1996 sequel).

But he was equally adept at strong, silent types in critically acclaimed fare like "The Right Stuff" (1983), "Silkwood" (1983), "Henry and June" (1990), "The Player" (1992), and "Short Cuts" (1993).

In 1990, he self-produced and appeared in "Miami Blues," starring Alec Baldwin and Jennifer Jason Leigh. He excelled in the indie "Two Small Bodies" (1993).

He was also no stranger to comedy, including memorable turns in "Big Business" (1988) and "Naked Gun 33-1/3: The Final Insult" (1994).

Later work included "Sweet Home Alabama" (2002) and "2 Guns" (2013), and appearances on the TV series "ER" (2006), "Grey's Anatomy" (2006), "United States of Tara" (2009), and "True Detective" (2015), after which he retired.

A "Tremors" TV sequel in 2018 with original co-star Kevin Bacon never came to pass.