Jay Benedict, Aliens and Dark Knight Rises actor, dies at 68 from coronavirus complications

Jay Benedict, an actor known for playing supporting roles in Aliens and The Dark Knight Rises, has died at the age of 68 from complications relating to the coronavirus. The unfortunate news of Benedict's passing was confirmed by his agency, TCG Artist Management, on Twitter.

"It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our dear client Jay Benedict, who this afternoon lost his battle with COVID-19. Our thoughts are with his family," reads the tweet.

He was only a few days away from his 69th birthday on April 11.

The actor was publicly mourned on social media by Pierce Brosnan, who played Benedict's brother in a stage production of Eduardo De Filippo's Filumena Marturano.

"He was a courageous man of handsome life force, that shone its light in every room he walked into, down every road he traveled, he shared his joyful radiance of kinship with all who knew him, a fine mind of intellect and compassion, he gave of himself in every way to the craft of acting, but above all else, he gave us all his great love of life, himself," wrote Brosnan on Instagram.

Read the full eulogy below:

Born in Burbank, California in April of 1951, Benedict enjoyed a prolific career that stretched across more than five decades.

In James Cameron's Aliens (1986), he played Russ Jorden, the father of Newt (Carrie Henn), the young girl whom Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) finds and adopts on LV-426. The original cut of the beloved sci-fi sequel had a more fleshed-out backstory for Newt's family, exploring how they died, but those additional scenes were axed for pacing reasons.

In Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Benedict played Rich Twit, the man Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) dances with at a masquerade ball before Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) cuts in. The film was the third and final entry in Nolan's live-action Batman trilogy.

Benedict is survived by his wife, Phoebe Scholfield, and their two sons, Leopold and Freddie.