Image: Lucasfilm

Alfie Curtis, who played Cornelius Evazan in Star Wars: A New Hope, has died, according to Jedi News. If the character name doesn’t ring a bell, the dialogue uttered in his single, memorable scene (“I have the death sentence on 12 systems!”) opposite Luke Skywalker in the Mos Eisley Cantina certainly will.


Evazan’s backstory was that he was, at one time, a promising plastic surgeon whose unorthodox methods ended up harming his patients more than hurting them. A life of smuggling and piracy soon followed—which led him to link up with Ponda Baba, who liked to drink just as much as he did. (They were wanted men, after all. Too bad buzzkill Obi-Wan Kenobi popped up right when a decent bar brawl was about to get going.) To the delight of many fans, Evazan and his partner notably pop up in Rogue One, lurching around Jedha, though the younger version of the character was played by Michael Smiley.

The London-born Curtis, who was born in 1930, had a long career that also included roles in David Lynch’s The Elephant Man and on numerous British TV shows. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends at this time.