Plenty of promising young stars have left us too soon — but the shocking, fatal accident that cut short the life of ’80s actor Jon-Erik Hexum especially left fans and followers alike wondering, what could have been?

Hexum, a New Jersey native, was on his way up in the world of film and television. In 1982, he landed his first starring role in Voyagers!, a sci-fi show about a time-traveling duo costarring Meeno Peluce (the half-brother of Punky Brewster‘s Soleil Moon Frye). Though it only lasted a single season, it raised his profile and helped him land a role opposite Joan Collins in the 1983 made-for-television movie, Making of a Male Model.