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Richard Hatch of 'Battlestar Galactica' Dies at 71: We'll Miss You, Apollo

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Actor Richard Hatch, who originated the role of Apollo on the science fiction television series "Battlestar Galactica," died Tuesday (Feb. 7) of pancreatic cancer, according to press reports. He was 71. 

Hatch was best known for his portrayal of Captain Apollo on the original "Battlestar Galactica" TV series from 1978 to 1979. When the series was revived in 2004 he portrayed the prisoner-turned-politician Tom Zarek. More recently, Hatch appeared in the "Star Trek" fan film "Prelude to Axanar" and its sequel "Axanar" as Commander Kharn. At New York Comic Con in 2010, Hatch talked with Space.com's sister site Newsarama to discuss his science fiction work. 

Actor Richard Hatch portrayed Captain Apollo in the original version of "Battlestar Galactica," which ran from 1978-9. (Image credit: Richard Hatch)

"It's amazing to have been on two shows, both [were] ground-breaking," Hatch told Newsarama's Justin Tyler at the time. "This show kind of like broke the ceiling of saying sci-fi can really be character-driven. It's about something; it mirrors back and reflects what's going on in the world. Great sci-fi has always been visioniary. So, we finally got a chance to do that."

'Battlestar Galactica's' Richard Hatch Talks 'Star Trek' and Sci-Fi History

Born in Santa Monica, California, Hatch landed acted in theater before landing a role on "All My Children" in 1970, according to CNN . Other roles followed, leading up to his appearance on "Battlestar Galactica."

In addition to "Battlestar Galactica" and "Star Trek," Hatch wrote science fiction books set in the "Battlestar Galactica" universe and created his own space opera "The Great War of Magellan."

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Tariq Malik
Tariq Malik
Editor-in-Chief

Tariq is the Editor-in-Chief of Space.com and joined the team in 2001, first as an intern and staff writer, and later as an editor. He covers human spaceflight, exploration and space science, as well as skywatching and entertainment. He became Space.com's Managing Editor in 2009 and Editor-in-Chief in 2019. Before joining Space.com, Tariq was a staff reporter for The Los Angeles Times covering education and city beats in La Habra, Fullerton and Huntington Beach. In October 2022, Tariq received the Harry Kolcum Award for excellence in space reporting from the National Space Club Florida Committee. He is also an Eagle Scout (yes, he has the Space Exploration merit badge) and went to Space Camp four times as a kid and a fifth time as an adult. He has journalism degrees from the University of Southern California and New York University. You can find Tariq at Space.com and as the co-host to the This Week In Space podcast with space historian Rod Pyle on the TWiT network. To see his latest project, you can follow Tariq on Twitter @tariqjmalik.