Special effects legend Rick Baker to retire

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

Rick Baker, a man that needs no introduction around these parts, has announced his retirement after a long, brilliant career, and the reason is painfully simple—studios want things done “cheap and fast” and Baker likes to do things the right way. With that, Baker will be auctioning off his personal collection of costumes and prosthetics, allowing fans a chance to call an iconic piece of cinema their own.

In an interview with the radio station 89.3 KPCC, Baker revealed his decision to retire, saying:

First of all, the CG stuff definitely took away the animatronics part of what I do. It’s also starting to take away the makeup part. The time is right, I am 64 years old, and the business is crazy right now. I like to do things right, and they wanted cheap and fast. That is not what I want to do, so I just decided it is basically time to get out. I would consider designing and consulting on something, but I don’t think I will have a huge working studio anymore.

Baker’s creations stretch across all of cinema, winning his first Oscar for his make-up work on AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON, bringing the wonderfully weird mind of Dr. Seuss to life with HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS, conjuring up all of those ridiculously awesome aliens in MEN IN BLACK and so much more. It’s a sad day and one that has me at a loss for words. I guess all I can really say is thanks for everything, even the nightmares, Rick.