Scott Wilson

William Delano Wilson (March 29, 1942 – October 6, 2018), known professionally as Scott Wilson, was an American film and television actor.

His breakout role was as real-life murderer Richard Hickock in the critically acclaimed film In Cold Blood (1967). He subsequently appeared in films like The Grissom Gang (1971), The New Centurions (1972), The Great Gatsby (1974), The Right Stuff (1983), A Year of the Quiet Sun (1984), The Exorcist III (1990), Dead Man Walking (1995), Shiloh (1996) and its sequels, Pride (1998), The Way of the Gun (2000), Pearl Harbor (2001), The Last Samurai (2003), Junebug (2005), and The Host (2006). He received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture for his role in William Peter Blatty's The Ninth Configuration (1980).

On television, Wilson played Hershel Greene on the AMC series The Walking Dead (2011–14; 2018). He also had a recurring role on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation as casino mogul Sam Braun, as well as a lead role on the Netflix series The OA as Abel Johnson.

Early life and education Wilson was born William Delano Wilson in the small Southern town of Thomasville, Georgia. He attended Southern Polytechnic State University, where he studied architecture and played basketball, but on a whim decided to hitchhike to Los Angeles in pursuit of an acting career. Wilson was offered the opportunity to join the show while visiting his 97-year-old mother in Georgia. However, he made two guest appearances since his character's death, and made his last onscreen appearance in the fifth episode of the ninth season of The Walking Dead.

Wilson reflected on his career in a 2011 interview with Access Atlanta's Rodney Ho: "It's been up and down. It's always been. You have dry spells. At different times, you are starting over. If you love it, you stay with it. That's what I'm doing. I've accomplished more than I would have hoped to have accomplished. I don't want to be a big movie star. I can be someone who walks the streets and not get mobbed. I want to be as fine an actor as I can be. I am still striving to be as good as I can be."

Death Wilson died from leukemia at his home in Los Angeles, on October 6, 2018, at the age of 76.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations