British actor David Legeno, who appeared as werewolf Fenrir Greyback in the Harry Potter films, has been found dead by hikers in a remote area of Death Valley in California.

Two hikers found Legeno's body in the early morning of July 6 in an area called Zabriskie Point, where summer temperatures regularly top 49 degrees Celsius.

"The remains have been identified as David Legeno, a 50-year-old United Kingdom man," said the Inyo County Sheriff's Office in a statement.

"It appears that Legeno died of heat-related issues, but the Inyo County Coroner will determine the final cause of death. There are no signs of foul play."

The burly, London-born professional boxer and martial arts expert played Greyback in several of the Harry Potter films, including Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) and the two-part finale Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

"Gutted to hear the sad news about Dave Legeno. He was a true big, friendly gentleman. Was a pleasure every time we met," tweeted co-star Tom Felton who played Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter movies.

Legeno also appeared in a string of other movies, including Snow White and the Huntsman, Snatch, Centurion and Batman Begins and had television roles in episodes of British soap operas Eastenders, The Bill and Emmerdale.

He worked on demolition sites after leaving school, before studying performing arts.

Legeno became a professional wrestler before getting a role in Guy Ritchie's 2000 London gangster movie Snatch.

When film work was slow he earned his living as a professional cage fighter, according to his profile on the IMDb movie industry website, adding that he put his fight career on hold after being in Harry Potter.

Zabriskie Point is the name of a 1970 movie by Italian great Michelangelo Antonioni, and the spot - famous for spectacular multi-coloured panoramas of Death Valley - was used for the cover of rockers U2's 1987 album The Joshua Tree.

AFP