The actor who played Darth Vader, David Prowse, has passed away. In the MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic (SWTOR), players gathered to pay their last respects to the actor.
This was David Prowse: David Prowse became particularly known for his role as Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy. The actor reportedly got the role due to his impressive height of nearly two meters and took on the physical embodiment of the Sith Lord.
Both in the original Star Wars film and in “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi”, Prowse was behind Vader’s mask. However, his voice is not heard in the film – that was recorded by James Earl Jones. Even the scene where Vader is unmasked at the end does not show Prowse, but rather the actor Sebastian Shaw.
On November 28, 2020, Prowse passed away at the age of 85. However, even though the actor was always seen in full Vader gear, his legacy endures. In Star Wars: The Old Republic, players gathered to honor Prowse once again.
Players Gather for Memorial
This is how players honored the actor: As seen in the video by “Dark Jedi Order”, several players gathered appropriately on the Sith world Dromund Kaas. There, many players knelt and observed silence in memory of Prowse.
After several minutes, the first players start to applaud, and more join in. Then fireworks are lit, followed shortly by the first lightsabers.
In the end, the entire room is brightly lit by the many lightsabers – and finally, the typical Force lightning is unleashed. Thus, the minute of remembrance ultimately turned into a memorial celebration in honor of the actor who played Darth Vader.
A very similar situation occurred last year when the SWTOR community gathered, to remember Peter Mayhew – the actor who played Chewbacca.
