This is a tough week for the Star Wars community, which has lost legendary Chewbacca actor Peter Mayhew. The man behind the Wookiee passed away at 74 on April 30th, and fans and fellow actors alike have been paying tribute to Mayhew. The latest in a long line of touching posts comes from John Boyega, the actor best known for playing Finn in the latest Star Wars trilogy. The actor took to Instagram to post a photo of himself with Daisy Ridley (Rey) and Mayhew as well as a photo of Mayhew and Carrie Fisher in costume, and a third photo of Chewbacca and Finn.
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“The happiness you brought to my life through Chewbacca was always enough but to meet you and experience your amazing heart was even better. Rest in peace Peter,” Boyega wrote.
You can check out the Instagram post below:
Many fans were quick to comment on the post, sharing in the sadness of the news.
“He left a Wookiee-sized hole in our hearts,” @leilahalipoetry replied.
“Beautiful tribute, at least he and Carrie are together,” @alittleselfjoy wrote.
“In many ways Chewy is the face of Star Wars. He’ll never be forgotten,” @rileyjoyce79 added
Fellow Star Wars actor Gwendoline Christie also commented on the post with a broken heart emoji.
Mayhew’s official Twitter account confirmed his passing on Thursday, which you can see here:
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
โ Peter Mayhew (@TheWookieeRoars) May 2, 2019
Mayhew portrayed the iconic character in the original Star Wars trilogy and returned to reprise the role in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Due to Mayhew’s limited mobility and recent health problems, Joonas Suotamo has taken on the role of Chewbacca in the subsequent Star Wars films, but Mayhew continued to serve as a consultant for the role he created.
A memorial service for friends and family of Peter Mayhew is set to be held on June 29th, with a memorial for fans expected to occur in December at EmpireCon LA.
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