Star Wars: Return of the Jedi actor Michael Pennington dead at 82
British actor Michael Pennington, one of the stars of Return of the Jedi, died at the age of 82.
A master interpreter of Shakespeare, Pennington was nevertheless best known for his portrayal of Moff Jerjerrod, the military officer responsible for overseeing the construction of the second Death Star in George Lucas’s 1983 sci-fi classic.
A versatile performer, he played former Labor Party leader Michael Foot in Margaret Thatcher’s biographical film The Iron Lady in 2011, opposite Meryl Streep.
Born on June 7, 1943, the popular theater actor joined the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) after graduating from Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1964.
He returned to the RSC a decade later after leaving to try his hand at more contemporary material, including Chekhov’s Three Sisters.
His second stint at the theater institution culminated, for many, in 1980’s Hamlet, in which he played the title role to near-universal acclaim.
British actor Michael Pennington as Moff Jerjerrod, the military officer responsible for overseeing the construction of the second Death Star in George Lucas’s Return of the Jedi
British actor Michael Pennington in Nathan The Wise at London’s Hampstead Theater in 2005
RSC director John Barton first discussed casting Pennington in the lead role in 1976, describing him as ‘a very good actor… the person I would most like to do Hamlet with’.
Pennington has also appeared in numerous film and TV roles throughout his career, demonstrating remarkable flexibility.
He took on the role of Laertes, Ophelia’s brother, in Tony Richardson’s 1969 adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
Pennington later captured the imagination of a generation of sci-fi fans after appearing in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi alongside fellow Old Vic alumnus James Earl Jones as military bureaucrat Moff Jerjerrod.
Other notable TV roles included the lead roles in 1986’s Oedipus Rex and the 1987 television film The Return of Sherlock Holmes.
Pennington was also a prolific writer. In addition to his work on Shakespeare classics such as Hamlet, Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Twelfth Night, he wrote Rossya: A Journey through Siberia in 1977.
Michael Pennington married actress Katharine Barker in 1964. The couple had a son, but their marriage ended in 1967.
His partner, arts administrator Prue Skene CBE, died in March last year.
Harry Potter actress Miriam Margolyes posted an emotional tribute to Pennington on social media, describing him as ‘such a good actor’.
‘Michael Pennington is dead. An old friend from his Cambridge days, a very good actor, intelligent, wise and clear. “I’m sorry beyond measure,” he wrote.
‘Bless your beloved memory. ‘Old friend.’
