Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows FanStore News Showtimes

Hoyt Axton

Highest Rated: 100% Heart Like a Wheel (1983)

Lowest Rated: 48% We're No Angels (1989)

Birthday: Mar 25, 1938

Birthplace: Duncan, Oklahoma, USA

Hoyt Axton's face is best known to audiences for his on-screen performances in a handful of '70s and '80s films. These include his role as the father of Billy Peltzer in "Gremlins." In the camp horror classic--one of cinema's most famous and amusing examples of "buyer beware"--Axton's character purchases a lovable, furry "Mogwai" for his son, only for it to produce less affable spawns once the child violates some of the unique rules that accompany all Mogwai: don't get them wet, and don't feed them after midnight. Axton also portrayed the father of Alec Ramsey in "The Black Stallion," the uplifting tale of a friendship between a boy and a wild horse. Axton's legacy as an actor, however, is meager compared to his legacy as a singer-songwriter. His signature song, "Joy to the World" (made famous by the band Three Dog Night), has featured prominently in many films, perhaps most powerfully in "The Big Chill," a comedy-drama about old friends reunited by a funeral. The soundtrack--consisting mostly of '60s and '70s hits--played an integral role in establishing the characters and the nostalgic tone of the story.

Show Less Show More

Highest rated movies

100% 82% Heart Like a Wheel
Watchlist
91% 83% The Black Stallion
Watchlist
86% 78% Gremlins
Watchlist
64% 40% Among Giants
Watchlist
50% 58% Disorganized Crime
Watchlist
48% 41% We're No Angels
Watchlist
Dixie Lanes
Watchlist
86% Dallas: The Early Years
Watchlist
51% Buried Alive
Watchlist
61% Deadline Auto Theft
Watchlist

Filmography

Movies

Credit
No Score Yet 27% King Cobra Mayor Ed Biddle (Character) - 1999
64% 40% Among Giants Non-Original Music $64.4K 1998
No Score Yet 33% Number One Fan Lt. Joe Halsey (Character) - 1995
No Score Yet 36% Kingfish: A Story of Huey P. Long Huey P. Long, Sr. (Character) - 1995
No Score Yet No Score Yet Season of Change Big Upton (Character) - 1994
No Score Yet No Score Yet Doorways Jake (Character) - 1993
No Score Yet No Score Yet Harmony Cats Bill Stratton (Character) - 1993
No Score Yet 51% Buried Alive Sheriff Sam Eberly (Character) - 1990
48% 41% We're No Angels Father Levesque (Character) $10.0M 1989
50% 58% Disorganized Crime Sheriff Henault (Character) $7.4M 1989
No Score Yet No Score Yet Desperado: Avalanche at Devil's Ridge Sheriff Ben Tree (Character) - 1988
No Score Yet 52% Retribution Lt. Ashley (Character) - 1987
No Score Yet No Score Yet Guilty of Innocence: The Lenell Geter Story Charlie Hartford (Character) - 1987
No Score Yet No Score Yet Dixie Lanes Clarence Laidlaw (Character) - 1987
No Score Yet 75% Christmas Comes to Willow Creek Al (Character) - 1987
No Score Yet 86% Dallas: The Early Years Aaron Southworth (Character) - 1986
No Score Yet 50% Act of Vengeance Silous Huddleston (Character) - 1986
86% 78% Gremlins Rand Peltzer (Character) - 1984
100% 82% Heart Like a Wheel Tex Roque (Character) - 1983
No Score Yet 61% Deadline Auto Theft Captain Gibbs (Character) - 1983
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Rousters Cactus Jack Slade (Character) - 1983
No Score Yet 59% The Junkman Capt. Gibbs (Character) - 1982
No Score Yet 34% Endangered Species Ben Morgan (Character) - 1982
No Score Yet 60% Liar's Moon Cecil Duncan (Character) - 1981
No Score Yet No Score Yet Cloud Dancer Brad's Mechanic (Character) - 1980
91% 83% The Black Stallion Alec's Father (Character) - 1979
No Score Yet 40% Smoky Fred Denton (Character) - 1966

TV

Credit
No Score Yet 78% The New Adventures of Captain Planet Big Ed Baker (Guest Voice) 1994
No Score Yet 89% Murder, She Wrote Sheriff Tate (Guest Star) 1988
No Score Yet No Score Yet Trapper John, M.D. Unknown (Guest Star) 1985
No Score Yet No Score Yet Diff'rent Strokes Unknown (Guest Star) 1984-1985
No Score Yet No Score Yet Flo Unknown (Guest Star) 1981
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Dukes of Hazzard Himself (Guest Star) 1981
No Score Yet No Score Yet McCloud Johnny Starbuck (Guest Star) 1977
No Score Yet No Score Yet Bionic Woman Big Buck Buckley (Guest Star) 1976
No Score Yet 58% I Dream of Jeannie Bull (Guest Star) 1966
No Score Yet No Score Yet Iron Horse Unknown (Guest Star) 1966
No Score Yet No Score Yet Bonanza Unknown (Guest Star) 1965