Chewbacca Actor Peter Mayhew Dies At The Age Of 74!

British-American actor Peter Mayhew dies at the age of 74!

The actor, who played Chewbacca in the space-opera Star Wars passed away on 30 April 2019 in his North Texas home. His official Twitter account shared the news on 2^nd May 2019.

The family of Peter Mayhew, with deep love and sadness, regrets to share the news that Peter has passed away. He left us the evening of April 30, 2019 with his family by his side in his North Texas home. pic.twitter.com/YZ5VLyuK0u

— Peter Mayhew (@TheWookieeRoars) May 2, 2019

Peter had been suffered from numerous health issuer. He had a double knee replacement surgery in 2013 and was hospitalized in 2015 because of pneumonia. Recently, he announced via his Twitter in July 2018 that he had undergone unspecified spinal surgery to improve his mobility.

Following his death, numerous celebrities expressed their sorrow through their social sites including George Takei and Bob Iger. Mark Hamill, who played the role of Luke Skywalker in the original Star Wars films described him as “the gentlest of giants”.

He was the gentlest of giants-A big man with an even bigger heart who never failed to make me smile & a loyal friend who I loved dearly-I'm grateful for the memories we shared & I'm a better man for just having known him. Thanks Pete #RIPPeterMayhew #Heartbroken @TheWookieeRoars pic.twitter.com/8xbq9HEWF2

— Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) May 2, 2019

However, his family did not reveal the cause of his death. The statement by his family said that a memorial service for friends and family would be held on 29 June. Additionally, a separate memorial for fans would take place in December this year.

Also Read: Country Singer Earl Thomas Conley Dies At Age 77!

Peter Mayhew Bio & Family

The veteran actor was born as Peter William Mayhew on 19 May 1944 in London.  The man with a towering height of 7 feet 3 inches (2.21 meters) was raised in Barnes, Surrey. Before starting the acting career, Mayhew worked as a hospital attendant at the King’s College Hospital in London.

Peter is survived by his wife and three children. He married Angelique Mayhew on 7 August 1999. The family resides in the town of Boyd, Texas. He became a naturalized United States citizen on 17 October 2005.

Career & Net Worth

Initially, Mayhew portrayed the uncredited role as Minoton in a fantasy film Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger in 1977. In the same year, he got the opportunity to cast in the movie, Star Wars.

Peter portrayed Chewbacca, a tall, hirsute biped and intelligent species from the planet Kashyyyk on the movie franchise. For his role, he was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the MTV Film Awards in 1997.

Apart from Star Wars, some of his acting credits include the 1978 horror film Terror, Yesterday Was a Lie (2008) and Killer Ink (2016). He provided a voice for Susha in the English version of Dragon Ball GT: A Hero’s Legacy. Moreover, he penned two books for a younger audience; Growing Up Giant, released in 2010 and My Favorite Giant, released in 2011.

Peter Mayhew appears as Chewbacca in the space-opera Star Wars (Picture: ABC)

With the long-tenured acting career, Peter has amassed the splendid amount of net worth. He had a net worth of $500 thousand, prominently earned from the Star Wars movie so far.