Watching Dallas back in the late seventies and eighties wasn’t just about the cliffhangers. It was a ritual. You gathered around the tube to see J.R. Ewing smirk, Bobby be the "good one," and the Southfork drama boil over like a Texas oil well. But looking back in 2026, the list of dallas actors who have died has grown considerably, and honestly, it’s a bit of a gut punch for those of us who grew up with them.
The show survived on the backs of titans. When you lose the titans, the show becomes a ghost. We often forget how much these actors lived through behind the scenes while playing those larger-than-life characters.
The Patriarch and the First Real Blow
Jim Davis was the foundation. As Jock Ewing, he was the only guy J.R. actually feared and respected. It's wild to think that Davis was already battling multiple myeloma during the third and fourth seasons. He wore a hairpiece to hide the effects of chemotherapy, and if you watch those episodes closely, his voice is raspier, his frame thinner.
He died in April 1981.
The producers were so shaken they didn't even want to recast. They just sent Jock to South America for "oil exploration" for a while before finally writing in the helicopter crash. It felt real because the cast’s grief was real. Victoria Principal was actually very close to him—he reminded her of her own father—and that's why those early mourning scenes feel so heavy.
Larry Hagman: The Man We Loved to Hate
You can’t talk about dallas actors who have died without the big one. Larry Hagman. J.R. Ewing himself.
Hagman was the sun the entire show orbited around. When he died in November 2012 from complications of leukemia, it felt like the end of an era for the second time. He was actually filming the second season of the Dallas TNT revival when he passed.
- He died in a Dallas hospital, which is poetic in a dark way.
- His final scenes were stitched together so J.R. could get a proper send-off.
- The "Who Shot J.R.?" phenomenon was the peak of 80s pop culture, but Hagman's real-life battle with his health was his toughest storyline.
Hagman was a trip. He used to lead "parades" on set and insisted on a "silent Sunday" where he wouldn't speak a word to rest his voice. People thought he was eccentric, but he was just protecting the character that made him a global icon.
The Matriarch and the Rival
Barbara Bel Geddes, our Miss Ellie, was the heart. She wasn't some glitzy soap star; she was a serious, Oscar-nominated actress who brought a grounded, "dirt-under-the-fingernails" energy to Southfork. She passed away in 2005 from lung cancer.
Then you have Ken Kercheval.
Man, Cliff Barnes was the ultimate underdog. Kercheval played him with this frantic, desperate energy that made you kind of root for him even when he was being a total mess. Ken was a long-term smoker and had part of his lung removed back in the 90s. He eventually died of pneumonia in 2019 at age 83.
It’s strange. In the show, Cliff and J.R. were eternal enemies. In real life, Kercheval and Hagman were quite close. They were the only two actors to appear in every single season of the original run.
Howard Keel and the Later Years
Howard Keel came in as Clayton Farlow to fill the void Jock left. He was a silver-screen legend from the MGM musical days, and he brought a certain class to the later seasons. Keel died in 2004 from colon cancer.
Others have left us too:
- Donna Reed: Played Miss Ellie for one season (a controversial move) and died in 1986.
- George Kennedy: The legendary Carter McKay, who passed in 2016.
- Glenn Corbett: Paul Morgan, died in 1993.
Who Is Still With Us?
Thankfully, the core trio of the "younger" Ewings is still around. Patrick Duffy (Bobby) is busy with his "Duffy’s Dough" sourdough business and still makes appearances. Linda Gray (Sue Ellen) is as elegant as ever at 85, and Victoria Principal (Pam) is a skincare mogul who mostly stayed away from the 2012 revival but remains a massive part of the legacy.
Basically, the show might be over, but the impact these actors had on television is permanent.
If you're looking to dive back into the lore, start by re-watching "The Search" (Season 5, Episode 13). It’s the tribute to Jim Davis, and it’s arguably the most honest hour of television the show ever produced. It strips away the glitz and shows the Ewings—and the actors—processing a very real loss.
Check out the official Dallas fan archives or the Paley Center for Media if you want to see the rare interviews where Hagman and Davis talk about the early days. It’s worth the trip down memory lane.
Next, you might want to look into the filming locations of Southfork Ranch—it's still a major tourist spot in Parker, Texas, and seeing the grounds helps put the scale of the Ewing empire into perspective.