Joanna Pettet 'Casino Royale' Actress Dead at 83

Published July 9, 2026 9:50 AM PDT

"Casino Royale" actress Joanna Pettet has died.

Her manager, Pam Dubois, shared the sad news on social media, telling The Hollywood Reporter she passed Tuesday at Temecula Valley Hospital in California.

She died exactly 31 years after her son, Damien Cord, passed away at age 26 from a heroin overdose. She shared Damien with actor Alex Cord.

Joanna played a spy in 1967's "Casino Royale," which starred David Niven as James Bond. She was also known for playing one of the 8 Vassar graduates in the 1996 film, "The Group." She was also in the 1968 Western, "Blue," in which she starred opposite Terence Stamp.

She starred in a number of television films, including 1974's "Welcome to Arrow Beach," 1978's "The Evil" -- both horror movies.

She also appeared on TV, acting in four episodes of Rod Serling’s NBC early 1970s anthology series "Night Gallery" and landed a recurring role in "Knots Landing" in 1983 as homicide detective Janet Baines.

Joanna studied acting at Neighborhood Playhouse and landed a handful of Broadway roles before breaking into TV and film, such as in "Poor Richard," which saw her take the stage opposite Alan Bates and Gene Hackman.

Interestingly enough, she was one of the last people to see Sharon Tate alive -- she and fellow actress Barbara Lewis enjoyed a lunch rendezvous with her hours before Tate and four others were murdered by Charles Manson's followers in August 1969.

She was 83.

RIP