Peter Mayhew pays tribute to Kenny Baker with heartfelt letter

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

Last Saturday the world lost a truly unique talent. Kenny Baker, the actor who portrayed R2-D2 in the STAR WARS movies passed away. Colleagues and fans took to the internet to express their feelings and share their fondest memories of Baker, with fans like Simon Pegg paying tribute.

On Monday, one actor and colleague who shared more in common with Baker than many would think, Peter Mayhew, released a letter on his website, Chewbacca.com, to express his feelings for the late Baker. In the letter he talked about how their physical characteristics (Baker was 3 feet 8 inches tall, while Mayhew is 7 feet 3 inches tall) allowed them to have a truly special bond.

Read the letter below:

In remembrance of Kenny…https://t.co/3vHlopDeoO pic.twitter.com/sSpVKHRcdk

— Peter Mayhew (@TheWookieeRoars) August 15, 2016

Other STAR WARS actors to pay tribute include Mark Hamill, who took to Twitter with this lovely message:

Goodbye #KennyBaker A lifelong loyal friend-I loved his optimism & determination He WAS the droid I was looking for! pic.twitter.com/rd94OEYaHi

— Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) August 13, 2016

Baker passed away on August 13 after a long illness.