Texas-born actor best known for his roles in three James Bond films, Joe Don Baker has died at the age of 89.
His family confirmed he passed away on May 7, 2025. The news was made public a week later.
His obituary read:
“As we say goodbye to Joe Don, we hold onto the memories and the love he shared with us. Though he may no longer be with us in body, his spirit will always remain, a guiding light in the lives he touched. Rest in peace, Joe Don. You will be dearly missed but never forgotten.”
Baker famously played both a Bond villain and a Bond ally across different films. He portrayed the arms dealer Brad Whitaker in The Living Daylights (1987) with Timothy Dalton. Later, he returned as CIA agent Jack Wade in GoldenEye (1995) and Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), opposite Pierce Brosnan.
He was one of only three actors in the franchise to play both a foe and a friend of James Bond.
In 1996, Baker appeared in Mars Attacks, Tim Burton’s sci-fi comedy, where he reunited on screen with Brosnan and shared scenes with Tom Jones, known for performing the Bond theme “Thunderball.”
Baker’s early career breakthrough came in 1972 with Junior Bonner, where he played the ambitious younger brother of Steve McQueen’s character. He followed this with a chilling performance as mob hitman Molly in Charley Varrick (1973), alongside Walter Matthau.
His role in Walking Tall (1973) as Buford Pusser, a real-life Tennessee sheriff who cleaned up local crime, brought him widespread acclaim.
In a 1990s interview, Baker reflected on the film’s cultural impact:
“In those days in the early ’70s, I think a lot of people wanted to take a stick to Nixon and all those Watergate guys.”
He added, “The film touched a vigilante nerve in everybody who would like to do in the bad guys but don’t have the power and would get in trouble if [they] did. But Buford was able to pull it off.”
Baker’s long career also included a BAFTA-nominated performance in the BBC miniseries Edge of Darkness. His other film credits spanned decades and included Cape Fear (1991), Reality Bites (1994), The Grass Harp (1995), Joe Dirt (2001), The Dukes of Hazzard (2005), and Mud (2012).
(Express)
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