When it comes to alternative Christmas movies, few are better than the 1984 comedy horror flick “Gremlins.”
Joe Dante’s classic, which was written by “Home Alone” director Chris Columbus, follows a young man Billy Peltzer (Zach Galligan), who receives a cute but mysterious pet as a Christmas gift. After Billy fails to follow a series of strict instructions required to take care of the creature, it multiplies and spawns the little green eponymous monsters that proceed to wreak havoc on his hometown on Christmas Eve.
Gremlins’ memorable cast also included the likes of 1980s icons Phoebe Cates and Corey Feldman, folk singer-songwriter Hoyt Axton, and the inimitable Dick Miller.
Let’s take a look at the cast as they were in 1984, and as they were now…
Zach Galligan (Billy Peltzer)
Zach Galligan was a complete newcomer to movie acting when he starred as a 20-year-old in “Gremlins.” He played Billy Peltzer, the young man who receives the mysterious creature (a “mogwai”) that causes all the chaos in the film.
GettyGalligan is now 61 and, per IMDb, has many more movies to his name.
His film credits now include the likes of 1984’s sci-fi comedy “Nothing Lasts Forever,” 1988’s comedy horror “Waxwork,” 1990’s satirical sequel “Gremlins 2: The New Batch,” 1991’s erotic thriller “Zandalee,” 1992’s comedy horror sequel “Waxwork II: Lost in Time,” 1993’s supernatural horror “Warlock: The Armageddon,” 1999’s erotic crime drama “Raw Nerve,” and 2013’s slasher horror sequel “Hatchet III.”
GettyPhoebe Cates (Kate Beringer)
Per IMDb, “Gremlins” was only the fourth movie Phoebe Cates had been in. She played Billy’s love interest Kate Beringer, and she was a month away from turning 21 when the film hit theaters.
The three movies she’d appeared in before “Gremlins” were 1982’s romantic adventure “Paradise,” 1982’s coming-of-age comedy “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” and 1983’s sex comedy “Private School.”
GettyCates in now 62 and retired from acting in the early 2000s. She’s been married to actor Kevin Kline since 1989 and her focus is now on her boutique business, located on New York’s Madison Avenue.
Her post-“Gremlins” movie roles included 1987’s fantasy rom-com “Date with an Angel,” 1988’s drama film “Bright Lights, Big City,” 1990’s satirical sequel “Gremlins 2: The New Batch,” 1991’s fantasy comedy “Drop Dead Fred,” 1993’s drama “Bodies, Rest & Motion,” and her final film, 2001’s comedy-drama “The Anniversary Party.”
GettyHoyt Axton (Randall Peltzer)
Hoyt Axton was arguably better known as a folk singer-songwriter than he was an actor when he appeared in “Gremlins” as a 46-year-old. He played Billy’s father, the struggling inventor Randall Peltzer, in the film. That being said, he did have many movie credits to his name.
Per IMDb, Axton had previously appeared in the likes of 1966’s Western movie “Smoky,” 1979’s adventure film “The Black Stallion,” 1980’s aviation drama “Cloud Dancer,” 1982’s independent action comedy “The Junkman,” 1982’s sci-fi horror “Endangered Species,”and 1983’s independent drama “Deadline Auto Theft.”
GettyTragically, Axton passed away on October 26, 1999, at the age of just 61. He had suffered two heart attacks in the space of two weeks.
He went on to appear in many more movies after “Gremlins,” including 1987’s horror flick “Retribution,” 1989’s heist comedy “Disorganized Crime,” 1989’s comedy “We’re No Angels,” 1992’s comedy “Harmony Cats,” 1992’s sci-fi comedy “Space Case,” and 1999’s direct-to-video sci-fi horror “King Cobra.”
There are very few images of Axton in his final years, so here’s a video of him from 1994.
Frances Lee McCain (Lynn Peltzer)
When “Gremlins” hit theaters, Frances Lee McCain was one month shy of her 40th birthday.
Still, she had only been acting for about a decade, and most of her credits were on the small screen. Per IMDb, her only five previous theatrical movie appearances came in 1973’s neo-noir thriller “The Laughing Policeman,” 1979’s comedy mockumentary “Real Life,” 1981’s comedy film “Honky Tonk Freeway,” 1982’s coming-of-age drama “Tex,” and 1984’s musical drama “Footloose.”
GettyMcCain is now 81, and while her acting career has been far from prolific, she has appeared in some memorable movies. They include 1985’s sci-fi adventure “Back to the Future,” 1986’s coming-of-age drama “Stand by Me,” 1996’s slasher horror “Scream,” 1998’s comedy-drama “Patch Adams,” 1999’s mystery thriller “True Crime,” 2018’s comedy-drama “Ideal Home,” 2019’s period thriller “Dreamland,” 2020’s crime comedy “The Comeback Trail,” and 2022’s crime thriller “End of the Road.”
There aren’t many recent pictures of McCain available, but here’s one Zach Galligan took with her in 2019.
Polly Holliday (Ruby Deagle)
Despite playing miserly elderly lady Ruby Deagle in “Gremlins,” Polly Holliday was actually a month away from turning just 47 when the film released in theaters.
Predominantly a television actress, she only had five movies to her name at that point. They included 1975’s comedy “W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings,” 1976’s biographical political thriller “All the President’s Men,” and 1978’s comedy “The One and Only” (per IMDb).
GettyHolliday sadly passed away on September 9, 2025. She was 88 and, following a rapid decline in her health, died from a bout of pneumonia.
After “Gremlins,” movies she went on to appear in included 1988’s rom-com “Moon Over Parador,” 1993’s comedy-drama “Mrs. Doubtfire,” 1996’s romantic black comedy “Mr. Wrong,” 1998’s family rom-com “The Parent Trap,” 2006’s comedy-drama “Stick It,” 2007’s romantic dark comedy “The Heartbreak Kid,” and 2010’s political biographical film “Fair Game.”
Sadly, there aren’t many recent pictures of Holliday, but here’s one from not long ago posted by a friend on social media.
Dick Miller (Murray Futterman)
Character actor Dick Miller — who, rather appropriately, was born on Christmas Day — was 55 when “Gremlins” was released. In the film, he played Murray Futterman, a paranoid World War II veteran and neighbor of the Peltzer family who had believed in gremlins his whole life.
Per IMDb, Miller had dozens of movie credits to his name before “Gremlins.” They included 1960’s horror comedy “The Little Shop of Horrors,” 1963’s independent horror “The Terror,” 1967’s gangster movie “The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre,” 1975’s dystopian sci-fi action movie “Death Race 2000,” 1978’s comedy horror “Piranha,” 1982’s comedy movie “National Lampoon’s Movie Madness,” and 1983’s sci-fi fantasy horror anthology film “Twilight Zone: The Movie.”
Miller passed away on January 30, 2019, at the age of 90. He was being treated for pneumonia at the time, but the official cause of death was a heart attack.
He remained a prolific actor for most of his life and his credits after “Gremlins” were plentiful. They included 1984’s sci-fi action movie “The Terminator,” 1985’s neo-noir black comedy “After Hours,” 1986’s independent techno-horror “Chopping Mall,” 1986’s sci-fi horror comedy “Night of the Creeps,” 1987’s sci-fi comedy “Innerspace,” 1989’s black comedy “The ‘Burbs,” 1990’s satirical sequel “Gremlins 2: The New Batch,” 1998’s action comedy “Small Soldiers,” and 2009’s dark fantasy horror movie “The Hole.”
Though photographs from Miller’s later life are hard to come by, here’s one of him in his 80s that was posted on social media.
Judge Reinhold (Gerald Hopkins)
Reinhold was 27 when Gremlins was released. He played Billy’s irritating and boastful co-worker Gerald Hopkins in the movie.
Per IMDb, prior to his appearance in the movie, his film credits included the likes of 1981’s war comedy “Stripes,” 1982’s slasher parody “Pandemonium,” and 1982’s coming-of-age comedy “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” (the latter of which he starred in alongside “Gremlins” co-star Phoebe Cates).
GettyReinhold went onto star in “Beverly Hills Cop” in the same year as “Gremlins,” meaning he appeared in two of 1984’s four highest-grossing movies.
He subsequently appeared in all three “Beverly Hills Cop” sequels, all three movies in “The Santa Clause” franchise between 1994 and 2006, 1988’s fantasy comedy “Vice Versa,” 1991’s erotic thriller “Zandalee” (in which he featured alongside “Gremlins” co-star Zach Galligan), 1997’s comedy “Family Plan,” and a pair of direct-to-video sequels to “Beethoven” in 2000 and 2001 respectively.
GettyCorey Feldman (Pete Fountaine)
Corey Feldman was a month away from becoming a teenager when “Gremlins” was released. He played Billy’s friend Pete Fountaine in the movie in what was his fourth film role.
Per IMDb, his previous movie credits were 1979’s sci-fi movie “Time After Time,” 1981’s animated buddy drama “The Fox and the Hound,” and 1984’s slasher horror “Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter.”
GettyFeldman is now 54 and the 1980s and early 1990s were hugely successful for him after “Gremlins.” He went on to appear in the likes of 1985’s slasher sequel “Friday the 13th: A New Beginning,” 1985’s adventure comedy “The Goonies,” 1986’s coming-of-age drama “Stand by Me,” 1987’s comedy horror “The Lost Boys,” 1989’s black comedy “The ‘Burbs,” and 1990’s superhero comedy movie “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.”
He’s remained active, but Feldman’s roles haven’t been quite as high-profile since then. That said, he recently featured as a contestant on season 34 of the hugely popular reality dance competition series “Dancing with the Stars.” The former child actor was paired with professional dancer Jenna Johnson, but the couple were eliminated after just two episodes, which was the earliest an elimination could possibly have occurred.
GettyMake sure you watch “Gremlins” this festive season. It truly should be a festive staple in everyone’s household!
May Hoyt Axton, Polly Holliday, and Dick Miller rest in peace.
