David Prowse, the original Darth Vader English actor and weightlifter who embodied Darth Vader, dies at 85

4 min readNov 29, 2020

British actor David Prowse, who played Darth Vader in the original “Star Wars” trilogy, has died aged 85, his management company announced Sunday.

Prowse died after a short illness, according to his agent Thomas Bowington. CNN reported in 2018 that Prowse was being treated for prostate cancer.

“It’s with great regret and heart-wrenching sadness for us and million of fans around the world, to announce that our client DAVE PROWSE M.B.E. has passed away at the age of 85,” Bowington Management said on Twitter Sunday.

David Prowse, the British weightlifting champion and man behind the Darth Vader mask, has died. He was 85.

The actor’s management company shared the news of his passing early Sunday morning on social media “with great regret and heart-wrenching sadness for us and million of fans around the world.”

Prowse wore the Darth Vader costume in the original Star Wars trilogy, while James Earl Jones provided the villain’s iconic voice. At a towering 6-foot-7 tall, the actor was originally offered a choice between the role of Vader or Chewbacca. In an interview with NPR in 2008, Prowse explained why he chose the villain.

May the force be with him, always!” his former agent, Thomas Bowington, said in a statement to the BBC.

“Though famous for playing many monsters — for myself, and all who knew Dave and worked with him, he was a hero in our lives.”

Prowse wore the black suit and helmet to play Darth Vader, but it was the actor James Earl Jones who provided the character’s voice. Prowse’s West Country English accent was thought to be unsuitable for the part.

Dave Prowse in his role as the Green Cross Code Man, with students from Lambeth Johanna Primary School in London.

But it was his role as the “Green Cross Code Man” from a British road safety campaign that Prowse said he was most proud of. He was awarded an MBE — a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire — in 2000 for that role.

Prowse was born into a working class family and grew up in a council estate in Southmead, in southwestern England. He gained a scholarship to attend Bristol Grammar School.

He had a passion for bodybuilding and was crowned British Weightlifting Champion several times in the 1960s. He became lifelong friends with actors Arnold Schwarzenegger in his weightlifting years, according to website IMDb.

His broad physique and towering figure helped land him roles as monsters and villains in TV shows and films. He played the monster in “The Horror of Frankenstein” in 1970 and a bearded torturer in “Carry on Henry” in 1971. That same year he made an appearance as a bodyguard in Stanley Kubrick’s dystopian film “A Clockwork Orange” in 1971.

He went on to play Darth Vader in all three of the original “Star Wars” films, in 1977, 1980 and 1983.

Health and fitness remained an interest for Prowse, who also worked as a personal trainer for actors playing the role of Superman, including Christopher Reeve, and wrote a book called “Fitness is Fun.”

He published an autobiography, “Straight from the Force’s Mouth,” in 2011.

Well, if you think back on all the movies that you’ve ever seen where there are goodies and baddies … you always remember the baddie,” he said

The towering Prowse is also known for his role as a bodyguard in Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange. Used to playing hulking monsters, Prowse portrayed Dr. Frankenstein’s creature in three separate films: Casino Royale (1967), The Horror of Frankenstein (1970) and Frankenstein and the Monster From Hell (1974). He also made a cameo on the popular British science fiction show, Doctor Who, as a minotaur.

From 1971–1990, Prowse was known to many children as The Green Cross Man, a spokesman for road safety in England. In a 2014 column for The Guardian, Prowse said his role as the Green Cross Man was “the best job” he’d ever had.

“Many people will know me for being the ultimate screen villain, Star Wars’ Darth Vader,” he wrote. “But being a “goodie goodie” and heading up the Green Cross Code campaign, helping to save thousands of lives has always been the ultimate honour.

His last credited role was as Professor Henry Wales in the series Mission Backup Earth. Prowse has appeared at multiple conventions and signings, before retiring in December 2017.

Mark Hamill, who portrayed Darth Vader’s son, Luke Skywalker, expressed his condolences on Twitter, calling the actor “a kind man & much more than Darth Vader.”

David Prowse, the original Darth Vader English actor and weightlifter who embodied Darth Vader, dies at 85

Written by Alamgirsb

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