John Ashton dead: “Beverly Hills Cop” actor was 76 years old

John Ashton, the veteran actor best known for playing grumpy detective John Taggart in the “Beverly Hills Cop” series, has died.

Ashton died Thursday in Fort Collins, Colorado, his family said in a statement to the Times, which was also shared by his manager Alan Somers. A cause of death was not announced. He was 76.

“John was a loving husband, brother, father and grandfather who will be sadly missed by all who knew him,” the family said.

Ashton, a Massachusetts native, died two months after the premiere of Netflix's “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F,” which reunited him with Eddie Murphy and Judge Reinhold 40 years after the original film premiered in 1984.

Martin Brest's first Beverly Hills Cop follows Murphy's Axel Foley, a Detroit detective who works to solve a murder case in Beverly Hills with the reluctant help of Ashton's Taggart and Judge Reinhold's Billy Rosewood.

Taggart is an experienced, disciplined detective whose relationship with Axel begins contentious. “We're more likely to believe an important local businessman than a foul-mouthed idiot from out of town,” Taggart tells his future partner on “Beverly Hills Cop.”

Tensions between Taggart and Axel eventually cool, leading to a successful rescue mission at the end of the film and paving the way for more Beverly Hills Cop films in the following years. Three years after the first film, Murphy, Ashton and Reinhold reunited for Beverly Hills Cop II, although Ashton did not return for 1994's Beverly Hills Cop III.

In July 2024, Netflix revived the film franchise and reunited the trio for “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F.”

“It was like a homecoming, like a family reunion, when we got together again. It was very easy,” Ashton told HeyUGuys during the film’s premiere.

Before “Beverly Hills Cop,” Ashton was no stranger to popular police projects, having appeared in series like “Kojak,” “Columbo” and “Starsky & Hutch” in the '70s. His TV credits also include “M*A*S*H,” “Dallas,” “Law & Order: SVU,” “Brookside” and “Hardball.”

Ashton also appeared in the films “An Eye for an Eye,” “Midnight Run,” “Little Big League,” and “Some Kind of Wonderful,” among others.

John David Ashton was born on February 22, 1948 in Springfield, Massachusetts. He graduated from USC, where he studied theater. Not only was Ashton a memorable actor, he was also an avid reader, golf enthusiast, New York Yankees and New York Giants fan, and a family man.

“For John, family was the most important thing,” his loved ones said.

He is survived by his wife Robin Hoye and children Michelle and Michael; stepchildren Courtney, Lindsay and Ashley; grandson Henry; sisters Sharon Ann Ashton and Linda Jean and brother Edward.

A celebration of life will be held at a later date, but the family says donations in Ashton's memory may be made to Pathways Hospice Care in Fort Collins.