Ron Cephas Jones Dead At 66 — This Is Us Creator Pays Tribute To 'The Best Of The Best'
Ron Cephas Jones, the actor best known for playing William Hill in This Is Us, has died. He was 66 years old.
A representative for the actor confirmed the news to People on Saturday and attributed Jones' death to a "long-standing pulmonary issue."
Jones appeared in all six seasons of This Is Us. He won two Emmys for Outstanding Guest Actor in 2018 and 2020 for his work portraying Randall Pearson's biological father in the NBC drama. The series ran between 2016 and 2022 and followed the Pearson triplets, Randall (Sterling K. Brown), Kate (Chrissy Metz) and Kevin (Justin Hartley), and their parents Rebecca (Mandy Moore) and Jack (Milo Ventimiglia), as they tackled emotional struggles together.
This Is Us creator Dan Fogelman took to X (fka Twitter) to eulogize the actor writing, "A massive loss. Ron was the best of the best – on-screen, on stage, and in real life. The coolest. The easiest hang and laugh. And my God: what an actor. I don't think I ever changed a single take of his in a cut... because everything he did was perfect."
He continued in a subsequent post: "I first got to know Ron at the start of This Is Us, a magical time when it felt like we were all being shot out of a cannon. He was always steady, always grateful – even as the madness swirled around us. He loved actors. He LOVED his daughter. And we loved him. All of Us."
Jones' other notable roles include Congressman Leon Kilbride in Law & Order: Organized Crime, Ron in Better Things, Professor Roger Dashmiel in Lisey's Story, Dr. Hyde in Looking for Alaska, Bobby Fish in Luke Cage, Winston Kipling in The Get Down and Romero in Mr. Robot. He also appeared in The Blacklist, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and NYPD Blue, among others. He most recently starred in all three seasons of Apple TV+'s true-crime drama, Truth Be Told, opposite Octavia Spencer.
His film credits include Half Nelson, Across the Universe and the TV movie, A Raisin in the Sun, to name a few.
He is survived by his daughter, actor Jasmine Cephas Jones.