The Wookie race has lost one of its greats. Peter Mayhew, the legendary actor that played Chewbacca throughout the entire Star Wars saga until The Force Awakens in 2015, has died at the age of 74.
His family has released a statement on Twitter saying that he passed on April 30th in North Texas with his family by his side.
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 Foundation (@TheWookieeRoars) May 2, 2019
Mayhew also appeared as Chewbacca in the original Star Tours attraction in Disneyland, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris. Here we have a video of him speaking alongside Ray Park (Darth Maul) at Star Wars Weekends 2011:
May the Force be with you, Peter. Kashyyyk (and Earth) will never be the same without you.