[ad_1]
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Peter Mayhew, the dominant actor who has donned a huge fur suit to bring Chewbacca's beloved and beloved character to life in the original Star Wars trilogy and two other films, is dead. his family said Thursday.
Mayhew died Tuesday at his home in North Texas, according to a family statement. He was 74 years old. No cause has been given.
As Chewbacca, known to his friends as Chewie, the 7-foot-3 Mayhew was a fierce, tender-hearted warrior, Harrison Ford's loyal acolyte Han Solo and a Millennium Falcon co-pilot.
Mayhew then appeared as the Wookiee in the 2005 edition of the film "Revenge of the Sith" and shared the role in "The Force Awakens" of 2015 with actor Joonas Suotamo, who took over the role in the following movies.
"Peter Mayhew was a kind and gentle man, endowed with great dignity and a noble character," Ford said in a statement Thursday. "He brought to Chewbacca these aspects of his own personality, as well as his spirit and grace. We have been movie partners and friends in life for over 30 years and I loved him … I think of his dear wife Angie and her children. Stay calm, my dear friend.
Mayhew defined the very famous Wookiee and became a world-famous actor almost all his life without saying a word or even making a sound – the famous roar of Chewbacca was created by sound designers.
"He put his heart and soul in the role of Chewbacca and it shows in every frame of the film," said the family statement. "But for him, the family" Star Wars "meant a lot more to him than a role in a movie."
Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker alongside Mayhew, wrote on Twitter that he was "the kindest of giants – a tall man with an even bigger heart who has never failed to make me smile and a faithful friend that I liked a lot. I am grateful for the memories we shared and I am a better man to have just known. "
Born and raised in England, Mayhew had appeared in a single film and worked as a paramedic in London when George Lucas, who shot the first film in England, found him and threw him into the movie. Star Wars "in 1977.
Lucas quickly chose when he saw Mayhew, who liked to say that all he had to do to get the role was to get up.
"Peter was a wonderful man," Lucas said in a statement on Thursday. "He was the closest that a man could be close to a Wookiee: big heart, sweet nature … and I learned to let him always win." He was a good friend and I am saddened by his passing. "
From then on, "Star Wars" would become Mayhew's life. He constantly appeared in the costume in commercials, television specials and public events. The long, frizzy hair that he saw most of his adult life made those who saw him in real life believe that he was Chewbacca, as well as his stature.
His height, a result of a genetic disorder known as Marfan syndrome, has been the source of constant complications for his health late in life. He had breathing problems, his language was limited and he often had to use scooters and wheelchairs instead of walking.
His family said his fight to play the role one last time in "The Awakening of Strength" was a triumph.
Even after his retirement, Mayhew served as adviser to his successor Suotamo, a former Finnish basketball player who had told The Associated Press last year that Mayhew had put him in the "camp". "training" before playing the role in "Solo".
Mayhew spent much of the last decades of his life in the United States and became a US citizen in 2005.
The over 200-year-old character, whose combination was compared to a monkey, a bear, and Bigfoot, and who wore a bandolier with ammunition for his laser rifle, was considered by many to be one of the most Larger than the original "Star Wars", a product resulting from a more economical science fiction offer.
The movies themselves seemed to recognize him.
"Will anyone make me walk on this big treadmill ?!", as Princess Leia said, Carrie Fisher, in the original text of "Star Wars." "Fuzzball" in "The Empire Strikes Back".
But Chewbacca would become a part of the "Star Wars" galaxy as enduring as any other character, its roar – which, according to Atlantic magazine, was made up of bear, lion, badger field recordings. and other animals – as famous as any sound in the universe.
"Chewbacca was an important part of the success of the films we made together," Ford said in his statement.
Mayhew is the third major member of the original cast to die in recent years. Kenny Baker, the actor Fisher and R2-D2, died in 2016.
Mayhew's family said he was active in various non-profit groups and had created the Peter Mayhew Foundation, which focused on reducing illness, pain and suffering, as well as the financial consequences of traumatic events. The family asked that instead of flowers, friends and fans donate to the foundation.
Mayhew is survived by his wife Angie and three children. A private service will be held on June 29, followed by a public memorial in early December at the Los Angeles Star Wars convention.
___
Follow Andrew Dalton on Twitter: https://twitter.com/andyjamesdalton .
[ad_2]
Source link