Mayhew died in 2019 and Baker, who played R2-D2, died in 2016. Dave Prowse, the Bristolian former bodybuilder best known for playing Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy, has died aged 85. #DarthVader #DaveProwse #RIPDaveProwse #StarWars." I hope you're up there sharing a pint and a story with the boys. The Twitter account of the Peter Mayhew Foundation, set up in memory of the actor who played Chewbacca, shared a picture of Prowse with Mayhew and their co-star Kenny Baker.
Darth vader actor original code#
"As a kid Dave Prowse couldn't be more famous to me stalking along corridors as evil incarnate in the part of Darth Vader & stopping a whole generation of kiddies from being mown down in street as the Green Cross Code man. He was awarded and MBE for his part as the Green Cross Man. He was invited to audition for the roles of Vader and Chewbacca after Star Wars director George Lucas spotted him playing a guard in 1971 film Clockwork Orange.Īlthough Darth Vader is his most famous role, Prowse maintained that his favourite job was as the "Green Cross Man", which he began working as in 1975.ĭressed in his distinctive white and green costume, Prowse was the face of British road safety for over 10 years, and said it was the "best job I ever had".įilm director Edgar Wright described him as the man who "stopped a whole generation of kiddies from being mown down in the street". He was also Superman actor Christopher Reeves' personal trainer, and was reportedly friends with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno during their body building days before all three of them went into film. Prowse said his favourite job was as the Green Cross Man in the 1970s and 80s.īefore becoming an actor Prowse represented England at the Commonwealth Games as a weightlifter in the early 1960s. He added that his death was "a truly and deeply heart-wrenching loss for us and millions of fans all over the world". "Though famous for playing many monsters - for myself, and all who knew Dave and worked with him, he was a hero in our lives." His agent Thomas Bowington: "May the force be with him, always! Instead James Earl Jones was picked as the voice - something which came as a surprise to the body-builder turned actor.
Darth vader actor original movie#
The former Bristolian body builder was picked to play the movie villain thanks to his imposing 6ft 6 stature, but his West Country accent was not deemed suitable enough to be the voice of the character. Prowse was the face of British road safety for more than a decade and he became known for his Stop, look and listen catchphrase.By Kate Prowse, the actor who played the iconic role of Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy, has died at the age of 85 following a short illness. The weightlifter-turned-actor also earned an MBE for playing the Green Cross Code Man, a role that saw him promote road safety in the UK. Stuntman/fencing coach Bob Anderson also stood in for Prowse in the lightsabre duels in Episode V and VI. In Return of the Jedi when Vader's masker is removed, moviegoers saw the scarred face of British actor Sebastian Shaw instead. Prowse wasn't the only the actor to play Vader in the original trilogy. We called him Darth Farmer, Carrie Fisher, who played Princess Leia in the films, said during an interview on The Jonathan Ross Show in March 2016. Prowse originally recorded Vader's voice but his West Country accent didn't work with Lucas, who had Prowse' vocals replaced by James Earl Jones'. The Chewbacca role eventually went to Peter Mayhew, who passed away in April 2019. He said, 'There's a character called Chewbacca, which is like a huge teddy bear, or alternatively, there's the main villain in the piece.' Well, there's no choice, is there? Thank you very much, I'll have the villain's piece.
In a 2016 interview, Prowse recalled, Lucas said to me, 'You've got a choice of two characters in the movie. Vader was famously voiced by the great James Earl Jones, with his menacing frame filled out by by 6'6 English actor David Prowse but at the conclusion of 1983s Return of the Jedi, neither. Prowse got the biggest role of his career when George Lucas approached him for first Star Wars (1977) after seeing his work in Stanley Kubrick's Clockwork Orange. Prowse even served as the physical trainer for the late Christopher Reeve as he prepared to take on the role of Superman. The Bistol-born Prowse also enjoyed significant success as an athlete prior to appearing in the Star Wars films, as he represented England as a weightlifter at the Commonwealth Games in the early '60s.Īround this time, he is said to have become close friends with rival bodybuilding competitors Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno, both of whom subsequently became big stars.
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