Actor John Ashton, widely recognized for portraying John Taggart in the “Beverly Hills Cop” movies, has sadly passed away at the age of 76.

Ashton “passed away peacefully” in Colorado on September 26, as reported in an obituary shared with YSL News by his representative. The cause of his death has not been disclosed.

The obituary stated, “John was a beloved husband, brother, father, and grandfather who will be profoundly missed by all who knew him.” His “legacy will always be cherished by his wife, children, grandchildren, as well as his brother, sisters, extended family, and everyone who loved him.”

Ashton played the role of cop John Taggart alongside Eddie Murphy in the original action-comedy “Beverly Hills Cop,” which debuted in 1984. He reprised this role in the sequel “Beverly Hills Cop II” and again in this year’s Netflix installment, “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F.”

In addition to his role in “Beverly Hills Cop,” Ashton featured in the 1988 action-comedy “Midnight Run” as Marvin Dorfler, a rival bounty hunter, alongside Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin.

Ashton was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, and grew up in Enfield, Connecticut. He pursued theater arts at the University of Southern California and began his acting career in the 1970s. He was also recognized for his roles in films such as “King Kong Lives” (1986), “Some Kind of Wonderful” (1987), “She’s Having a Baby” (1988), and “Gone Baby Gone” (2007).

On television, Ashton appeared in various classic series, including “Columbo,” “M*A*S*H,” “Dallas,” “The A-Team,” “The Twilight Zone,” “Fantasy Island,” and “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.”

This year, during an interview with YSL News, Murphy expressed joy that many original cast members from “Beverly Hills Cop” returned for the new film “Axel F,” including Ashton, who did not participate in “Beverly Hills Cop III.”

Murphy commented, “We had three ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ movies, but the third one fell a bit flat compared to the first two because it didn’t include all the original cast members. Now, with John back as Taggart, along with Paul (Reiser) and Bronson (Pinchot), we finally had all the essential elements from the first film.”

Earlier this year, during a guest appearance on the “Today” show with Murphy and co-star Judge Reinhold, Ashton remarked that returning to his role in “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” felt “surreal.”

“I recall a crew member helping me out of the car and saying, ‘Seeing you three together again gave me chills,'” he shared.