Who is John Ashton?
Well, if you’ve never in your life ever heard of Beverly Hills Cop, then obviously you don’t know who John Ashton is. And if you’ve never heard of Beverly Hills Cop, then I really don’t know how you made it through the ’80s! John Ashton is the man who played the gruff yet lovable Sergeant John Taggart opposite Axel Foley – Eddie Murphy – in the iconic cop comedies. Born on February 22, 1948, in Springfield, Massachusetts, Ashton has enjoyed a long career. He is Hollywood’s go-to guy for that role of the rough, stoic character-who also looks like he could probably grill a mean steak at a family BBQ.
John Ashton Acting Career
John Ashton’s career took off like a rocket on Red Bull in the 1980s, but he acted in Beverly Hills Cop (1984) and its sequel Beverly Hills Cop II (1987). Both were huge box office hits, grossing more than $300 million worldwide. That is a lot of cop chases, smashed cars, and one-liners with a dash of humor. Ashley’s portrayal of the sarcastic and crusty Sergeant Taggart made him a fan favorite. In fact, if you ever found yourself in a bind with some particularly diabolical criminal mastermind, you’d probably want a guy like Taggart on your team—although, to be fair, he’d probably grumble about it the whole time.
After the success of Beverly Hills Cop, Ashton didn’t rest on his laurels (not that we think he ever knew where those laurels were in the first place). Then there were the random supporting roles that appeared, like in Midnight Run (1988), a repeat performance with Robert De Niro in another variation of rough but lovable hijinks, and Some Kind of Wonderful (1987), which we’re pretty sure every actor was contractually obligated to star in if they wanted to work in the ’80s.
Alongside experimenting on television guest appearances, he featured in programs such as The A-Team and Murder, She Wrote. He has been busy at studios in Hollywood for years, building the reputation of the “tough guy who is always one wisecracking comment away from an intermission for donuts.”
John Ashton Net Worth
Now, here is the big question: how much is John Ashton worth in 2024? Bang, bang, drums. tada! As of 2024, John Ashton’s net worth is approximately $3 million. That is a lot of steak dinners and cop-themed memorabilia. Not that Ashton ever quite scaled the level of wealth to the level of the multi-mansions, private jets of his peer set – we think especially of those brothers Carradine – but his smooth ride has made him comfortably rich.
He reaped it during his prime, ’80s and ’90s when he’d earn a check of between $200,000 to $500,000 per picture. We are pretty sure that every time someone puts Beverly Hills Cop in their DVD player or streams it for the billionth time, Ashton sees a residual check hitting his bank account. In fact, those residuals still pay off, with Ashton likely pocketing an extra $100,000 to $200,000 a year just from royalty checks. Let’s be honest—wouldn’t you love to still get paid for work you did 40 years ago?
John Ashton Age
Time flies when you’re a Hollywood tough guy! John Ashton is now 76 years young and though he may not chase down bad guys on screen as much anymore, he’s still very much alive and kicking. When not dodging explosions or telling off youngins of the police department in our minds, Ashton is probably just relaxing and enjoying his well-deserved retirement. Who knows? Perhaps he’ll treat us to a cameo appearance in Beverly Hills Cop 5: Taggart’s Revenge.
John Ashton Family: Wife and Children
Nor does the hard-man persona of Ashton go home to his family. The actor has been married twice, because, well, movie stars cops need personal lives too. First married in 1968 was Victoria Marie Runn. The couple had a daughter, but after two years of “I told you I wasn’t going to the police station on our anniversary!”, they were divorced in 1970. (Okay, it probably wasn’t quite like that).
He married Bridget Baker-Ashton in 1976, whom he fathered another child with. That marriage also didn’t work out, and they split in 2001. Still, don’t feel too bad for Ashton-ashton has been married to his second wife, Robin Hoye, for the last 24 years, apparently happy as clams. He also has several stepchildren from Robin’s previous marriage, so if you are counting (we do), that makes for a pretty full Thanksgiving table.
John Ashton Height and Weight
John Ashton stands 5 feet 10 ½ inches tall. Again with the precision–he doesn’t just measure up to 5’10”, but he’s got that half inch, thank you very much! And whereas we don’t have hard figures for his weight, let’s just say Ashton has that solid build of a guy who spent decades playing grumpy cops and gruff tough guys. If we had to guess, we’d say he probably looks like he could still take you down in a donut-eating contest (or a fistfight, whichever comes first).
Also Read: Maggie Smith Net Worth 2024: How much is the British actress Worth?
