Steve Railsback
Photoplayd Industry Rating
Not enough rated films yet to compute a weighted score.
Roles are weighted by involvement: director 1.0, screenwriter 0.7, lead 0.8, supporting 0.4, crew 0.1.
Steve Railsback (born November 16, 1945, in Dallas, Texas) is an American theatre, film, and television actor. He is best known for his performances in the films The Stunt Man and Lifeforce, and his portrayal of Charles Manson in the 1976 television mini-series Helter Skelter. Railsback was a student of Lee Strasberg and the Actors Studio and in the late 1960s and early 1970s spent 10 years working in theatre in New York City. He once said that he found Strasberg extremely difficult to work with. He made his film debut in The Visitors, directed by Elia Kazan. He portrayed two notorious murderers, appearing as Charles Manson in the 1976 television miniseries Helter Skelter and as Ed Gein in the 2000 film In the Light of the Moon. He also served as executive producer of the latter film. Other notable roles include the part of Cameron in The Stunt Man with Peter O'Toole, the astronaut Tom Carlsen in Tobe Hooper's Lifeforce, Duane Barry in two episodes of The X-Files, and Joseph Welch in the pilot episode of Supernatural. In 2008, he appeared in the science fiction/horror movie film Plaguers.
Known for
Credits
In the Line of Fire (1993)
as CIA Agent David Coppinger (uncredited)
American Pie Presents: The Book of Love (2009)
as Alumnus Guy #5
The Devil's Rejects (2005)
as Sheriff Ken Dwyer
Lifeforce (1985)
as Col. Tom Carlsen
Barb Wire (1996)
as Colonel Pryzer
Disturbing Behavior (1998)
as Officer Cox
Armed and Dangerous (1986)
as The Cowboy
Turkey Shoot (1982)
as Paul Anders
The Hitcher II: I've Been Waiting (2003)
as Deputy Jessup (uncredited)
The AGFA Mystery Mixtape Vault (2020)
as (archive footage)
Storytelling (2001)
as Mr. Kirk
Scissors (1991)
as Alex Morgan / Cole Morgan
Save Me (1994)
as Robbins
Best Served Cold: How a Revenge Film was Buried for Decades (2026)
as Himself
Rest Stop: Don't Look Back (2008)
as The Owner
Alligator 2: The Mutation (1991)
as Vinnie Brown
Helter Skelter (1976)
as Charles Manson
Gone Are the Days (2018)
as Jaden
Good Cops, Bad Cops (1990)
Actor
Calendar Girl (1993)
as Eddie Darpinian
King of the Lost World (2005)
as Larry
The Stunt Man (1980)
as Cameron
Once Fallen (2010)
as Aryan Boss
Blue Monkey (1987)
as Det. Jim Bishop
Vanishing Point (1997)
as Sergeant Preston
Me and Will (1999)
as Rob
Stranger in the House (1997)
as Jack Derby
The Forgotten (1989)
as Lt. Jesse Brady
Not Quite Hollywood (2008)
as Self
Wild in Blue (2014)
as Charlie's Father
Sunstroke (1992)
as Biggs
Final Mission (1994)
as Colonel Glen Anderson
AGFA Mystery Mixtape #2: Later in L.A. (2020)
as (archive footage)
Unspeakable: Beyond The Wall of Sleep (2024)
Actor
Trick or Treats (1982)
as Bret
Ed Gein (2000)
as Ed Gein
Pressure Point (1997)
as Arno Taylor
Scenes from the Goldmine (1987)
as Harry Spiros
Made Men (1999)
as Kyle
UnConventional (2004)
as Self
The Box (2003)
as Jake Ragna
Cockfighter (1974)
as Junior
Deadly Intent (1988)
as Jeff Kirkwood
The Sinister Saga of Making The Stunt Man (2000)
Actor
Angela (1977)
as Jean
The Cross of Iberia (1990)
as Novak
Deadly Games (1982)
as Billy Owens
Neo Ned (2005)
as Mr. Day
Street Corner Justice (1996)
as Sergeant Ryan Freeborn
The Visitors (1972)
as Mike Nickerson
Slash (2002)
as Jeremiah
Nukie (1987)
as Dr. Eric Harvey
The Making Of Lifeforce (1985)
as Self
The Wind (1986)
as Kesner
Torchlight (1984)
as Jake Gregory
Spearfield's Daughter (1986)
as Tom Border
The Golden Seal (1983)
as Jim Lee
The Last Escape of Billy the Kid (1972)
as Billy the Kid
Separated by Murder (1994)
as Jesse Dixon
The Survivalist (1987)
as Jack Tillman
Night Caller (2022)
as Andrew Lubitz
Private Wars (1993)
as Jack Manning
Intermedio (2005)
as Old Man
Ready or Not (2009)
as Pilot
Great Transport (1983)
as Pavle Paroški
Bonds of Love (1993)
as Ken Smith
The Assassin (1990)
as Hank Knight
Plaguers (2010)
as Tarver
Termination Man (1998)
as Dylan Pope
Forever (1992)
as William Desmond Taylor
Distortions (1987)
as Scott Marshall
Zigs (2001)
as Charlie
H: The Story of a Teen-Age Drug Addict (1951)
as Bill
Follow the Prophet (2009)
as Senator Stanton
Quake (1992)
as Kyle
Infiltrators (2014)
as Sebastian Koenig