David Prowse Biography

Tall and broad-shouldered, David Prowse played the menacing villain Darth Vader in the 1977 film Star Wars.

David Prowse was once a competitive weightlifter, and his physique was his entree into the movie business: he appeared as large men in the films Hammerhead (1968), The Horror of Frankenstein (1970) and as the wheelchair-carrying bodyguard in Stanley Kubrick‘s A Clockwork Orange (1971).

Star Wars was an unexpected smash hit, and Darth Vader became David Prowse’s signature role, one he played in two sequels: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983). In all three cases, Prowse did the physical acting only for Darth Vader; the voice was dubbed by James Earl Jones.

Younger versions of Darth Vader — then named Anakin Skywalker — were played by actors Jake Lloyd and Hayden Christensen in The Phantom Menace (1999), Attack of the Clones (2002) and Revenge of the Sith (2005). In the 2016 prequel Rogue One, the adult Darth Vader was played onscreen by 6’7″ British actor Spencer Wilding; Prowse was slowed by arthritis and, at age 81, a little too old to take on the role.

Prowse was a regular on the Star Wars fan convention circuit from the 1980s on into the 21st century. He announced his retirement from signing autographs in 2018. He published an autobiography, Straight From the Force’s Mouth, in 2011.