10 Best Tom Skerritt Movies

Tom Skerritt is one of American cinema’s most quintessential character actors. We lost him yesterday, and I have spent the last twenty-four hours going over his massive list of starring roles, trying to pick the ones I love most.

Skerrit could play anything or anyone. He brought gravity to every genre and knew how to channel our hopes and dreams, as well as our biggest fears.

He built a reputation for elevating every scene he entered without ever needing to steal the spotlight.

Today, I want to go over 10 of the best Tom Skerritt movies every film buff and aspiring filmmaker should study.

Let's dive in.

1. Alien (1979)

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• Director: Ridley Scott
• Writer: Dan O'Bannon (screenplay), Dan O'Bannon and Ronald Shusett (story)
• Cast: Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm, Yaphet Kotto

Skerritt plays Captain Arthur Dallas of the commercial towing vessel Nostromo. The film centers on Skerritt remaining calm during all the chaos. He grounds the whole film and makes the alien's arrival all the more shocking and scary.

2. Contact (1997)

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• Director: Robert Zemeckis
• Writer: James V. Hart and Michael Goldenberg (based on the novel by Carl Sagan)
• Cast: Jodie Foster, Matthew McConaughey, James Woods, Tom Skerritt, William Fichtner

Man, I love him in this role. I think he should have gotten an Academy Award here for being kind of a villain, but also the perfect foil for Foster in this movie. David Drumlin is a politically savvy government advisor who undercuts Dr. Ellie Arroway (Jodie Foster) at every turn. We hate him, but he's not evil; he's just showing her how it's done on some level. It's a game she refuses to play, and he knows that.

3. A River Runs Through It (1992)

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• Director: Robert Redford
• Writer: Richard Friedenberg (based on the novella by Norman Maclean)
• Cast: Craig Sheffer, Brad Pitt, Tom Skerritt, Brenda Blethyn, Emily Lloyd

Proof that Skerritt can do it all, this movie takes place in 1920s Montana. He plays Reverend John Maclean, a Presbyterian minister who teaches his sons life lessons through fly fishing. It's quiet and beautiful, a look at aging, grace, and a father struggling to guide his rebellious son.

4. M*A*S*H (1970)

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• Director: Robert Altman
• Writer: Ring Lardner Jr. (based on the novel by Richard Hooker)
• Cast: Donald Sutherland, Elliott Gould, Tom Skerritt, Sally Kellerman, Robert Duvall

Skerritt's breakout film role came as Captain Augustus Bedford "Duke" Forrest in Robert Altman’s classic. He's so young here; I don't think I recognized him the first time I saw it. It's crazy to see him so energetic in a comedy and going so big. He matches Sutherland and Gould's charisma perfectly.

5. The Dead Zone (1983)

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• Director: David Cronenberg
• Writer: Jeffrey Boam (based on the novel by Stephen King)
• Cast: Christopher Walken, Brooke Adams, Tom Skerritt, Herbert Lom, Anthony Zerbe

Before the USA series, David Cronenberg directed this pretty spooky movie, adapted from a Stephen King thriller. Skerritt plays Sheriff George Bannerman, a small-town lawman who seeks help from a psychic (Christopher Walken) to catch a serial killer. Skerritt plays the officer's desperation and skepticism perfectly, and it only raises our suspicions of who is to blame for all these killings.

6. Steel Magnolias (1989)

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• Director: Herbert Ross
• Writer: Robert Harling (based on his play)
• Cast: Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Shirley MacLaine, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis, Julia Roberts, Tom Skerritt

Man, this movie is underseen. I feell ike it gets referenced a lot, but more people need to embrace this weeper. It's really wonderful. Skerritt plays Drum Eatenton, Sally Field's gun-toting but good man husband. He's a man you can rely on, even when things get bad. And they just get bad in this over and over, but the people you can count on help you make them good again. Skerritt brings lighthearted humor and warmth that makes you feel like it'll all be okay.

7. Top Gun (1986)

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• Director: Tony Scott
• Writer: Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr.
• Cast: Tom Cruise, Kelly McGillis, Val Kilmer, Anthony Edwards, Tom Skerritt

In Tony Scott’s iconic 1980s action blockbuster, Skerritt plays Commander Mike "Viper" Metcalf, TOPGUN's chief instructor. He's great in this; it could have been number one. I just put it back here to shake things up. He is like the perfect Navy man. And he keeps Maverick in check.

8. Cheech & Chong's Up in Smoke (1978)

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• Director: Lou Adler
• Writer: Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong
• Cast: Cheech Marin, Tommy Chong, Tom Skerritt, Stacy Keach

Again, his role in both Contact and Cheech and Chong demonstrates his range; Skerritt plays "Strawberry," Anthony's (Chong) shell-shocked Vietnam-veteran cousin who struggles to get over the war. It's this legendary stoner performance.

9. The Turning Point (1977)

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• Director: Herbert Ross
• Writer: Arthur Laurents
• Cast: Shirley MacLaine, Anne Bancroft, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Leslie Browne, Tom Skerritt

In this Oscar-nominated ballet drama, Skerritt plays Wayne Rogers, the supportive husband to Shirley MacLaine. He's again the grounded husband who is there to support a woman experiencing grief and trauma. and to help his family.

10. Lucky (2017)

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• Director: John Carroll Lynch
• Writer: Logan Sparks and Drago Sumonja
• Cast: Harry Dean Stanton, David Lynch, Ron Livingston, Ed Begley Jr., Tom Skerritt

Watch this movie! It's full of old legends just crushing it on screen. In it, Skerritt reunites with his Alien co-star, Harry Dean Stanton, in this poignant indie drama about what life hands you again. Skerritt plays Fred, a fellow WWII veteran who shares stories over coffee at a local diner and waits to die, like the rest of them.

Summing It All Up

Tom Skerritt is an actor who it feell ike will live forever through his work. He played so many different roles over his life, and it was a pleasure to see what he brought to each one. While we mourn his loss, it's great to celebrate his legacy and to hope young actors can follow in his footsteps.