Dave Prowse, the actor who played Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy, is dead

Prowse was a former bodybuilder who played the roles of several monsters in movies before being invited by George Lucas to audition for the roles of Vader and Chewbacca. He chose Vader and, when asked why, he replied: “Everyone remembers the bastard.” The role of Chewbacca was assigned to Peter Mayhew, who died last year.

Born in Bristol in 1935, Prowse was raised by his mother from IMDB and has never met his father. He developed a passion for bodybuilding and weight training in his early teens and competed in Mr Universe competitions, where he became friends with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno.

He has won the British Weightlifting Championships three times and was selected to represent England at the 1962 Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia.

Prowse’s first film was Casino Royale in 1967, where he played Frankenstein’s Monster. Although the cast was based on Prowse’s stature, he developed a strong interest in acting and decided to pursue it further. His resume includes roles in Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange and many horror films. He was the personal trainer who trained Christopher Reeve for the role of Superman in 1978.

Prowse’s acting career spanned 50 years, but his role as Sith Lord in Star Wars brought him international fame.

His West Country accent was not considered appropriate for the role of Darth Vader, and many lines were doubled with those of American actor James Earl Jones in post-production. British Olympic fencing fighter Bob Anderson was also in some costume fight scenes.

Star Wars movie stars are among those who paid tribute to Prowse.

Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker, wrote on Twitter: “It’s so sad to hear that David Prowse is dead. He loved his fans as much as they loved him. #RIP.”

The Mandalorian actor Carl Weathers tweeted: “RIP David Prowse. The man who contributed so much to the legend of Darth Vader. #BePeace.”