Jeremy Bulloch has died. A British actor best known for his work in the Star Wars franchise—where he embodied iconic bounty hunter Boba Fett in The Empire Strikes Back and Return Of The Jedi—Bulloch was a prolific performer on the U.K.’s stage and screen. A noted collector of Star Wars memorabilia, and a regular on the convention scene, he died on Thursday following several years of living with Parkinson’s Disease. Bulloch was 75.
Bulloch originally came up through British children’s entertainment and soap operas, scoring an early win with The Newcomers in 1965 before popping up in small film roles, or with the occasional appearance on Doctor Who. (He played two different parts in the long-running franchise, a feat he’d repeat with the James Bond movies a few years later.) Bouncing between film, TV, and theater, Bulloch spent the 1970s living a fairly standard-seeming version of the working actor’s life—until, in 1979, a non-speaking performance in the sequel to an unlikely sci-fi blockbuster altered the trajectory of his life.
In Bulloch’s own words, he only even got the Boba Fett call on something of a fluke; his half-brother Robert Watts was an associate producer on the film, and suggested he put in for the part—and, wouldn’t you know it, the already-crafted suit fit. In fact, Bulloch wasn’t even the one who originated the character, who originally appeared, in animated form, in The Star Wars Holiday Special, while his voice in Empire was provided by prolific character actor Jason Wingreen. But his sinister, helmeted cool, and menacing, Western-inspired body language quickly made Fett a fan favorite—and when George Lucas’ Special Editions re-injected Star Wars fandom directly back into the public consciousness in the mid-1990s, Bulloch’s performance was front and center, elevating his profile significantly. Apparently bemused and delighted by his unexpected entry into the sci-fi cult canon, Bulloch embraced his newfound celebrity, becoming a fixture of fan conventions, traveling the world, and collecting the toys and pictures fans enjoyed gifting him.
In the meantime, he continued to work and act regularly—because, to be fair, it’s not like his most high-profile gig had given him an especially typecast face. Bulloch continued to appear in British shows like the 1984 Robin Hood series, 1994's Sloggers, and more, before finally getting to show his actual mien in a Star Wars movie in 2005's Revenge Of The Sith, where he played a starship pilot.
Bulloch stopped appearing at fan conventions in 2018, as the symptoms of his Parkinson’s Disease worsened. On his website, he wrote this at the time:
It is with a heavy heart that I have decided to stop attending conventions and hang up the Fett helmet. It has not been an easy decision to make. In 1979 I was called onto the set of Empire Strikes Back to play Boba Fett, and since that day it has changed the entire direction of my life in such a wonderful way. It has been a privilege to have had the opportunity to inspire so many generations of Star Wars fans. I have had over 20 years of travelling with my wife Maureen to some amazing countries and have met so many wonderful fans. Thank you all so much and we will miss you all.
24 Comments
May he be slowly digested over a thousand years.
Too soon! Try fifty thousand years.
Rotting will definitely beat out a digestion that long.
Hope that sarlacc has some Tums…
“I’ve got a BUUURRRP feeling about this!”
He’s no good to me dead.Go fuck yourself, 2020.
Put 2020 in the cargo hold.
The president will compensate you if he dies . . . nah, he won’t. Trump doesn’t pay for NUTHIN’!
Incredibly nice at all cons he went to. His wife was his handler and she was super sweet.
Awwwww that’s sweet.
My wife is my handler!
But did he? Did he really write “Subscribe to our newsletter!” at the time?You also may want to invest in some editing to prevent this kind of thing: “R.I.P. original Boba Fett actor” and “Bulloch wasn’t even the one who originated the character.”
I met him at a con once. He was really nice. Clearly he loved the fact that he got to be a small part of an amazing franchise but he didn’t let it get to his head.
Boba Fett and Darth Vader gone in the same year? 2020 ain’t playing.
Who’s next, Jar Jar?
“Wesa gonna die?”
Ya don’t mess wit’ da ‘Squatch, an’ ya don’t fuck wit’ da Fett!
before finally getting to show his actual mien in a Star Wars movie in 2005’s Revenge Of The Sith, where he played a starship pilot.I thought that the blond Imperial officer who’s escorting Leia near the end of ESB was also Bulloch, who filled in when someone called in sick or something. That’s what I remember reading, anyway.
Yes. He aged really well, or at least did between 1980 and 1999, since he looks almost exactly the same in TPM.
Also a (fairly often) recurring character in the best Robin Hood ever put to tv, Robin of Sherwood.
He’s worth a lot to me
my son and I met him at a comic con probably the year before he retired. He showed no signs of Parkinsons and was a sweet guy (the older Star Wars guys are SO nice at the comic cons, they’ll talk your ear off), so he must have deteriorated relatively fast. Life sucks sometimes.
I know it’s become fairly trending in revisionist circles to say Boba Fett was a weak character who did nothing and only has seven lines, but (at risk of presenting a trendy revisionary take on a revisionary take) that’s a load of horseshit and always was. In Empire, Vader has to physically restrain him from murdering Chewbacca. Vader keeps changing his deal with Lando, but never alters a detail of his deal with Fett, a sign of respect from someone who doesn’t need to respect anyone. And in the phenomenal Sarlacc Pit fight, he’s the only one who presents a real threat to Luke. He gets in a successful attack with a rope capture, and later is about to shoot Luke in the back until Chewbacca and Han stop him.And this is entirely due to Bulloch’s physical acting. It’s a brilliant bit of stoic Western gunslinger presence: slow and methodical observation, with sudden lightning fast bursts of violence. Both with Chewbacca on Cloud City and when Leia’s bounty hunter pulls out the thermal detonator, while every else is figuring out how to react, Bulloch’s already got Fett’s weapon drawn and ready. And his nod to Leia when her deal with Jabba is accepted is just perfect. It’s not Shakespeare, but as a costumed genre actor, Bulloch crushed it. RIP.