Beloved ‘Star Wars’ Actor Dies At 77

Angus MacInnes, the beloved actor who memorably played a supportive role during rebel forces’ attack on the Death Star in the first “Star Wars,” passed away last week, the New York Post reports. He was 77.

Family members of the Canadian actor shared the news with fans on his Facebook page, writing that he “left us peacefully, surrounded by his family and love.” He died on December 23rd, but no cause of death was listed. “For Angus, the fans of Star Wars held a special place in his heart. He loved meeting you at conventions, hearing your stories, and sharing in your passion for the saga. He was continually humbled, delighted, and honoured by the admiration and passion of the fans and convention community,” his family wrote, the New York Post reports. “Angus was more than an actor—he was a kind, thoughtful, and generous soul who brought warmth and humor into the lives of everyone who knew him. He will be deeply missed by his family, friends and fellow actors but also by his fans around the world – his family thank you all.”

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We are saddened to report that actor Angus MacInnes has passed away at the age of 77.

He was best known to Star Wars fans for portraying Jon "Dutch" Vander, A.K.A. Gold Leader in ‘A New Hope’ and ‘Rogue One’. pic.twitter.com/OYyOHkjZGU

— The Star Wars Underworld Network (@TheSWU) December 30, 2024

Played by MacInnes, Gold Leader Jon “Dutch” Vander led Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker and a squadron of X-wing Starfighters in the climax of “Star Wars: A New Hope” during their successful raid on the Darth Vader and the Death Star. Vander, who flew a BTL Y-wing starfighter into battle, was shot down by Vader.

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The MacInnes family also drew attention to some of the actor’s other career highlights, including appearances in “Witness,” “Judge Dredd,” “Hellboy” and “Captain Phillips,” among others. “His work touched countless lives, and he took great pride in being part of these stories that continue to resonate with audiences worldwide,” the statement goes on.

Fans offered their sympathies, paying tribute to MacInnes and sharing their memories of encounters with him. “I had the privilege of getting to know Angus personally, for which I am very grateful. RIP Goldleader,” one person wrote in response on Facebook. Another commented, “So sorry for your loss. I had the honor of meeting him back in 2002 or so and often interacted on his posts. He was very kind.” They added, “I will raise a glass to Gold Leader, on his wing.”

“[I] had the pleasure of meeting [A]ngus many times at cons, he was such a lovely man, RIP,” wrote a third fan.

Born October 27th, 1947, MacInnes has spoken previously about his enthusiasm when working for “Star Wars” creator and original director George Lucas. “I got into the cockpit to do this scene and George [Lucas] said, ‘Have you learnt your lines out of sequence?’ and I said, ‘What are you talking about?’ and he said, ‘Just your lines,’ and I said, ‘No… I’ve learnt my lines with the cues,’ you know, somebody cues me and I talk,” MacInnes told The Telegraph in a 2014 interview. “He said, ‘No, just do your lines.’ And so we started shooting and it was just a nightmare.”

The actor added, “I mean, it turned into a s—storm because I couldn’t remember anything without the cues. I needed that other voice to respond to, so I kept drying. I knew the lines perfectly well, I just couldn’t remember them,” he said, laughing. “I thought, ‘What am I going to do here?’ and I started sweating, so I needed a make-up artist there with a mop. I mean, I was sweating buckets.”

MacInnes continued, “I was in a flat panic and [George] came and said, ‘Well, can you read them?’ and I said, ‘Yeah, let’s do that.’ I was so panicked at that point that I would have done anything. If he’d said, ‘You need some heroin,’ I would have rolled my sleeve up. So, I had a piece of script on this leg, a piece of script on this leg and I had a chunk of script above me and a chunk of script over here. So, we shot the whole thing and I read the stuff off [them]. There’s no performance – in that sense – at all. It’s just reading lines and I thought, ‘I don’t care. I’ve just got to get out of here.’”

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