A Variety report says character actor Peter Jason, known to gamers as the gruff, put-upon Drill Sergeant Dornan in Fallout 2 and Dizzy in the Gears of War series, has died.
Jason was a well-known "that guy" in films and television, with more than 260 credits going back to the 1960s, according to IMDB. He had memorable roles in 48 Hrs, Prince of Darkness, and a long run as Con Stapleton in HBO's Deadwood series, but he appeared in pretty much everything: Other credits include Heartbreak Ridge, The Karate Kid, The Golden Girls, Knots Landing, Marked for Death, Castle, The New Woody Woodpecker Show, Mortal Kombat (the good one), Mommy Dearest, Starsky and Hutch, and dozens of others. The guy got around.
Elias Toufexis, an actor well-known for his own work in games and television, called Jason "the consummate character actor" in a message posted to X.
He was also a frequent collaborator with famed horror director John Carpenter, appearing in films including They Live, Prince of Darkness, In the Mouth of Madness, Village of the Damned, and Escape from LA.
"Peter Jason, one of the great character actors in cinema, has died," Carpenter wrote in a farewell message. "His first movie was Howard Hawks' Rio Lobo. He was a dear friend and I'll miss him terribly."
Aside from being a prolific character actor, Jason also contributed to a handful of videogames. He served up a memorable turn as Dizzy Wallin in Gears of War 2 and 3—the official Gears account described Jason as "a legend" in its own tribute to the actor.
For me, though, his best work in games came in the role of Arch Dornan, the Enclave drill sergeant who got very tired of your nonsense in Fallout 2. It wasn't a huge role, but it was memorable enough that Obsidian name-checked him 12 years later in Fallout: New Vegas.
The Variety report says the cause of death was cancer. Peter Jason was 80 years old.
