Actor James Handy, a veteran character actor whose credits ranged from Top Gun: Maverick to Jumanji, was killed Wednesday morning in a stabbing in Los Angeles, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. He was 81.
Police said the attack happened in the Tarzana neighborhood and identified the suspect as 44-year-old Michael Gledhill, the son of Handy’s girlfriend. Gledhill was arrested and booked at Van Nuys Jail on one count of murder, with bail set at $2 million.
What police say happened in Tarzana
According to the LAPD, West Valley patrol officers were sent around 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, June 3, 2026, to the 19200 block of Erwin Street after a 911 call reporting “unknown trouble.”
Police said the caller told dispatchers, “I am the son of man, I just killed the man of sin.”
When officers arrived, they found Handy in the front yard of the home, unconscious and suffering from a stab wound to the chest. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics took him to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The department said the suspect flagged down responding officers nearby and told them he was the person they were looking for. Police said Gledhill lived at the residence with his mother, who was Handy’s girlfriend.
“Detectives believe this is an isolated incident and there appears to be no danger to the public at this time,” the LAPD said.
Handy’s representative confirms his death
A representative for Handy confirmed that the victim was the actor.
“With great sadness I can confirm that the gentleman who was attacked and killed on Wednesday in Tarzana was the actor James Handy,” the representative said.
Handy’s death carried the kind of shock that can come when a familiar face is gone before many people knew his name. Handy built the kind of career that makes movies and television feel lived-in: bartenders, doctors, officials, neighbors, men with a job to do and usually one problem too many.
In Top Gun: Maverick, released in 2022, Handy appeared as the bartender. It was a small role in a very big movie, the kind of credit that ties a decades-long career to a modern blockbuster.
A long career across film and television
Handy’s film work stretched across several decades. In 2017’s Logan, he played the doctor who treated Hugh Jackman’s character. In the 1995 adventure film Jumanji, he appeared as the exterminator. He also played Milton Briggs in Arachnophobia.
His other film credits included:
- The Rocketeer
- Brighton Beach Memoirs
- The Verdict
- K-9
On television, Handy appeared in dozens of series and built a steady résumé of guest and recurring roles. He played Arthur Devlin in eight episodes of Alias and had recurring roles on Melrose Place and NYPD Blue.
Born in New York, Handy earned his first screen credit in 1977’s Taps. From there, he became one of those actors audiences recognize immediately, even if the name takes a second. Hollywood has always depended on performers like that, even if it does not always say so out loud.
