Andrew Jack, a British actor who starred in “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” and was also a dialect coach on the “Lord of the Rings” films, has died as a result of the coronavirus at age 76.
Jack died in a hospital just outside London on Tuesday, his agent Jill McCullough said in a statement. Jack was unable to see or talk to his wife, Gabrielle Rogers, because she was quarantined in Australia after having flown in from New Zealand last week. According to McCullough, there is a chance a funeral may not be held.
“Andrew was full of life – he was tall and striking with flowing white hair, you wouldn’t miss him if he walked into a room,” McCullough said. “He loved his work and was funny, charming and a joy to be around.
“Dialect coaching isn’t just about being good at accents – you need to make actors feel safe and confident – and Andrew’s actors adored him.”
Rogers, also a dialect coach, posted on Twitter that Jack was “diagnosed with coronavirus 2 days ago. He was in no pain, and he slipped away peacefully knowing that his family were all ‘with’ him.”
Jack appeared in “Last Jedi” and “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” as Resistance General Caluan Ematt, and he also was in “Solo: A Star Wars Story.” Christopher Miller, one of the original directors on “Solo,” took to social media to honor Jack – a dialect coach on the film – as “a kind and thoughtful man. We asked him to teach Alden (Ehrenreich) to speak Shyriiwook, and I’ll always remember listening to them gargle-roar at each other back and forth.”
“Force Awakens” co-star Greg Grunberg shared a picture of him and Jack on Twitter and said he was “a wonderful, talented, beloved gentleman” as well as “one of the kindest people I’ve ever worked with.”
As a dialect coach, Jack had been working on the upcoming film “The Batman” starring Robert Pattinson. He also worked with Robert Downey Jr. for “Sherlock Holmes,” Chris Hemsworth for the “Avengers” films and “Thor: Ragnarok,” and with actors on films including “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Captain America: The First Avenger” and “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.”
Contributing: Rasha Ali contributed to this story.
