Evan Helmuth, the film and TV actor who played a priest in William Brent Bell’s 2012 horror movie The Devil Inside, died Monday of complications from a stroke. He was 40.

Also among his film credits, he appeared opposite Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore in the Farrelly Brothers’ Fever Pitch, playing Fallon’s Red Sox-loving sidekick, and was in Joshua Michael Stern’s 2013 Steve Jobs biopic Jobs starring Ashton Kutcher.

On the TV side his credits spanned the likes of ABC’s Alias, CBS’ NCIS, Fox’s Bones, TNT’s Rizzoli & Isles and more recently CBS’ comedic drama Battle Creek.

An alumnus of the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, Helmuth attended the USC School of Dramatic Arts. There he met future TV writer-producer Josh Appelbaum who co-wrote the Alias episode that featured Helmuth in a guest starring role.

“Evan was the warmest, most generous soul imaginable,” Appelbaum said Wednesday night of his longtime friend. “His passion for this industry was only outweighed by his passion for his friends. We met over 20 years ago at USC, where Evan was an instant lightning rod on the stage. He loved his craft, he loved entertaining audiences and he was as good as it gets at both. (He also loved PEARL JAM!!!). His life and legacy will never be forgotten by the countless broken hearts around Los Angeles tonight…”

Helmuth is survived by his sister, Erika; his stepmother, Paula; and his beloved dog Sasha.

“Rest in peace brother,” actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan wrote on Twitter.