The entire galaxy is in mourning today as one beloved member of the originalStar Warsuniverse haspassed away.Kenny Baker, perhaps best known as the man inside R2-D2, succumbed to a lengthy illness. He was 83 years old at the time of his passing. Baker’s niece Abigail Shield was the first to report the news, telling this toThe Guardian.
“It was expected, but it’s sad nonetheless. He had a very long and fulfilled life.”
Standing at 3-foot, 8-inches, Kenny Baker was one of the few actors capable of fitting inside the body ofdroidR2-D2, which needed someone to bring the practical character to life back in 1977. He was fully credited as one of the main cast members in the original movieStar Wars: A New Hope, and would return for the next two installments in the first trilogy, 1980’sEmpire Strikes Backand 1983’sReturn of the Jedi, the later of which also saw him donning the Ewok costume of Paploo. He even played R2-D2 in the 1978Star Wars Holiday Special.
He would later return to the role for 1999’sStar Wars: The Phantom Menaceand its two sequels 2002’sAttack of the Clonesand 2005’sRevenge of the Sith. Advancements in technology, coupled with his failing health, saw that he wasn’t needed to get back in the can for last year’sThe Force Awakens, though he was still given a screen credit.
Kenny Baker was born on June 24, 2025 in Birmingham, England as Kenneth George Baker. He got his start in the world of acting taking on the role of a Dwarf in the thrillerCircus of Horrors, where he went uncredited. While he is most widely remembered for his role as R2-D2, the actor can be seen out of costume as Fidgit in the Terry Gilliam family classicTime Bandits.
He would go onto have roles in several other notable movies, including David Lynch’sElephant Man, the 1980Flash Gordon, the Academy Award-winningAmadeusand Jim Henson’sLabyrinth. He also had an uncredited role in George Lucas and Ron Howard’s fantasy epicWillow. He played a Zookeeper as recently as 2002 in24 Hour Party People. And he recently had a role in the upcoming horror movieWhen the Devil Rides Out. Abigail Shield had this to say about her beloved uncle.
“He did extremely well in his life. He was very ill for the last few years so we had been expecting it. He had been looked after by one of his nephews who found him on Saturday morning.”
Kenny was married toStar Warsco-star Eileen Baker, who played a fellow Ewok. She passed away in 1993. Kenny Baker andAnthony Daniels, who plays R2-D2’s sidekick C-3PO, are the only two actors to have appeared in all 7Star Warslive-action movies.Episode VIIIonly just wrapped earlier this month, and it isn’t known ifKennyparticipated in the production at all. Condolences go out to his friends and family.
