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.

Filmography

• 2024Unspeakable: Beyond The Wall of Sleep
• 2022Night Caller — Andrew Lubitz
• 2020AGFA Mystery Mixtape #2: Later in L.A. — (archive footage)
• 2020The AGFA Mystery Mixtape Vault — (archive footage)
• 2018Gone Are the Days — Jaden
• Decker — Fictional General Cotter
• 2014Infiltrators — Sebastian Koenig
• 2014Wild in Blue — Charlie's Father
• Femme Fatales — Dr. Daniel Duryea
• 2010Once Fallen — Aryan Boss
• 2010Plaguers — Tarver
• 2009American Pie Presents: The Book of Love — Alumnus Guy #5
• 2009Follow the Prophet — Senator Stanton
• 2009Ready or Not — Pilot
• 2008Rest Stop: Don't Look Back — The Owner
• The Mentalist — Fred Kittel
• 2005Intermedio — Old Man
• 2005King of the Lost World — Larry
• 2005Neo Ned — Mr. Day
• Supernatural — Joseph Welch
• 2005The Devil's Rejects — Sheriff Ken Dwyer
• 2003The Box — Jake Ragna
• 2003The Hitcher II: I've Been Waiting — Deputy Jessup (uncredited)
• 2002Slash — Jeremiah
• 2001Storytelling — Mr. Kirk
• 2001Zigs — Charlie
• 2000Ed Gein — Ed Gein, Executive Producer
• 2000The Sinister Saga of Making The Stunt Man
• Family Law — Gary Peres
• 1999Made Men — Kyle
• 1999Me and Will — Rob
• Charmed — Litvack
• 1998Disturbing Behavior — Officer Cox
• 1998Termination Man — Dylan Pope
• 1997Pressure Point — Arno Taylor
• 1997Stranger in the House — Jack Derby
• The Practice — Walter Dawson
• The Visitor — Colonel James Vise
• 1997Vanishing Point — Sergeant Preston
• 1996Barb Wire — Colonel Pryzer
• 1996Street Corner Justice — Sergeant Ryan Freeborn
• 1994Final Mission — Colonel Glen Anderson
• 1994Save Me — Robbins
• 1994Separated by Murder — Jesse Dixon
• 1994Terminal Voyage — Second Unit Director
• 1994The Spy Within — Director
• 1993Bonds of Love — Ken Smith
• 1993Calendar Girl — Eddie Darpinian
• 1993In the Line of Fire — CIA Agent David Coppinger (uncredited)
• 1993Private Wars — Jack Manning
• The X-Files — Duane Barry
• 1992Forever — William Desmond Taylor
• 1992Quake — Kyle
• 1992Sunstroke — Biggs
• 1991Alligator 2: The Mutation — Vinnie Brown
• 1991Scissors — Alex Morgan / Cole Morgan
• 1990Good Cops, Bad Cops
• 1990The Assassin — Hank Knight
• 1990The Cross of Iberia — Novak
• 1989The Forgotten — Lt. Jesse Brady, Executive Producer, Writer
• 1988Deadly Intent — Jeff Kirkwood
• 1987Blue Monkey — Det. Jim Bishop
• 1987Distortions — Scott Marshall
• 1987Nukie — Dr. Eric Harvey
• 1987Scenes from the Goldmine — Harry Spiros
• 1987The Survivalist — Jack Tillman
• 1986Armed and Dangerous — The Cowboy
• 1986Spearfield's Daughter — Tom Border
• 1986The Wind — Kesner
• 1985Lifeforce — Col. Tom Carlsen
• The Twilight Zone — (segment "Dead Run")
• 1984Torchlight — Jake Gregory
• 1983Great Transport — Pavle Paroški
• 1983The Golden Seal — Jim Lee
• The Great Transport — Pavle Paroški
• 1982Deadly Games — Billy Owens
• 1982Trick or Treats — Bret
• 1982Turkey Shoot — Paul Anders
• 1980The Stunt Man — Cameron
• From Here to Eternity — Pvt. Robert E. Lee Prewitt
• 1977Angela — Jean
• 1976Helter Skelter — Charles Manson
• Helter Skelter — Charles Manson
• 1974Cockfighter — Junior
• 1972The Last Escape of Billy the Kid — Billy the Kid
• 1972The Visitors — Mike Nickerson
• 1951H: The Story of a Teen-Age Drug Addict — Bill

Appearances as themselves (4)

• 2026Best Served Cold: How a Revenge Film was Buried for Decades — Himself
• 2008Not Quite Hollywood — Self
• 2004UnConventional — Self
• 1985The Making Of Lifeforce — Self