Hollywood legend Drew Struzan - behind iconic movie posters for Star Wars, Back to the Future, The Goonies and Harry Potter - dies at 78
A Hollywood legend - Drew Struzan - famed for his iconic posters for box office hits including Star Wars, Back to the Future, Indiana Jones and Harry Potter, has died at the age of 78.
The man behind iconic movie posters - including Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, Back to the Future and The Goonies - has died, aged 78. Designer Drew Struzan was a favourite of directors including George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, with whom he collaborated on films such as ET, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and Hook.
A post on his official Instagram account confirmed the sad news, saying: "It is with a heavy heart that I must tell you that Drew Struzan has moved on from this world as of yesterday, October 13. I feel it is important that you all know how many times he expressed to me the joy he felt knowing how much you appreciated his art."
Struzan started his career as a designer in the 1960s, working on album covers for the likes of the Beach Boys, Bee Gees, Liberace, Black Sabbath, and Alice Cooper - for whom his work on the Welcome to My Nightmare album has achieved cult acclaim - before he moved into film posters in the 1970s.
His big break came when he designed a secondary image for the theatrical re-release of Star Wars, which led to him becoming a sought-after name in Hollywood. By the 80s, he working on about 10 posters a year. Speaking about his career, he said a gamble with his style in a bid to stand out had paid off.
"I had to do something different, and I think that the trouble with a lot of early movie posters is that they looked too much like classic illustration, which feels like it’s telling the whole story. I didn't want to do that," he said in a 2021.
"I felt that art was more than just telling the story. In fact, telling the story in a poster is wrong for a movie. I wasn’t looking to tell a story. I’m looking to give a person a feeling about something they could hope for."
Struzan was also behind posters from movie history such as Blade Runner, Big Trouble in Little China, Coming to America, and the US poster for Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
In March, his wife confirmed he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, saying: “Drew can no longer paint or sign things for you. He is not enjoying a well-deserved retirement but rather fighting for his life.”
DC Comics chief, Jim Lee, was among those who paid tribute, calling him “a giant among giants”. “His work captured the humanity, power and emotion of his subjects in ways not seen since," he went on. "Thank you for bringing to life all the tentpole moments of my childhood and beyond.”