Famous actor, Peter William Mayhew, died in late April of 2019. Mayhew was known for playing the roll of Chewbacca in the film series, Star Wars. At age thirty-three, he auditioned for the roll in the Star Wars film and was immediately cast as Chewbacca because of his astonishing height. Mayhew stood at a height of 7 feet 3 inches; but his great size was not always to his advantage. He was wheelchair-bound for two years and was greatly dependent on it during the filming of The Force Awakens. Undergoing double knee replacement surgery in 2013, Mayhew was on the road to recovery. Then in 2018, the actor revealed via Twitter that he had undergone spinal surgery in hopes to be able to walk again. In a post on Twitter on August 28, 2018, Mayhew wrote, “Sorry, I’ve been quiet as of late. I’ve been planning & going through some spinal surgery to improve my mobility. It’s been a success & I’ll be spending the upcoming weeks recovering.”

All was going well for Mayhew until the tragic night of April 30, 2019. Mayhew died of a heart attack at his home in Boyd, Texas, just days before his 75th birthday. His family announced his death via Twitter. “He left us the evening of April 30, 2019 with his family by his side in his North Texas home,” stated his family. He is now buried in Reno, Parker County, Texas, in Azleland Memorial Park and Mausoleum.