Iconic Star Wars and Indiana Jones visionary Drew Struzan has died at 78

Drew Struzan, the iconic movie poster artist behind Star Wars, Blade Runner and Back to the Future, has died at the age of 78.

His passing comes several years after he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and stepped out of the spotlight. 

The devastating news was announced by his brother Greg Struzan on his official Instagram account on Tuesday. 

‘It is with a heavy heart that I must tell you that Drew Struzan has moved on from this world as of yesterday, October 13th,’ Greg wrote in a statement. ‘I feel it is important that you all know how many times he expressed to me the joy he felt knowing how much you appreciated his art.’ 

The American illustrator, beloved by Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, created more than 150 film posters over his career, including ones for The Shawshank Redemption, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, the Indiana Jones franchise and Harry Potter. 

For nearly four decades, he made a name for himself with his bold style and use of color that helped entice audiences to make their way to the box office. 

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Spielberg famously described Struzan as his ‘favorite movie artist’ and admitted to feeling pressure to ‘live up to the art that’ he would ‘ask Drew to create for the poster.’ 

Struzan was also behind the album covers for a number of hit records for artists like The Beach Boys, Bee Gees and Earth Wind & Fire.

This includes Alice Cooper’s Welcome to My Nightmare, which Rolling Stone ranked as one of the top 100 album covers of all time.  

He announced his retirement in 2008, but returned to design posters for Stephen King’s The Dark Tower, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and the How To Train Your Dragon trilogy. 

In 2013, Erik Sharkey released the documentary, Drew: The Man Behind the Poster, about Struzan’s life and career. 

The documentary features interviews with a number of people, including Struzan, his wife, Dylan Struzan, his son, Christian Struzan as well as Spielberg, Guillermo del Toro and George Lucas, and actors Harrison Ford and Michael J. Fox. 

While discussing the creative process behind each poster in 2021, Struzan told  Slashfilm that he feels art is ‘more than just telling the story.’

‘I’m looking to give a person a feeling about something they could hope for,’ he explained. ‘I asked the directors what they’re doing and why they were doing it, [and] I try to find the best in what they are doing, then I paint that way.’

The American illustrator, beloved by Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, created more than 150 film posters over his career, including the Indiana Jones franchise and Harry Potter

For nearly four decades, he made a name for himself with his bold style and use of color that helped entice audiences to make their way to the box office

To do this, he said he always looks to find the best pictures of the actors and scenes and ‘design a composition that is open ended.’ 

At the age of 18, he moved from Oregon to California to attend the ArtCenter College of Design.

He worked his way through school by selling his artwork and accepting small commissions. 

‘I was poor and hungry, and illustration was the shortest path to a slice of bread, as compared to a gallery showing. I had nothing as a child. I drew on toilet paper with pencils – that was the only paper around. Probably why I love drawing so much today is because it was just all I had at the time,’ he said of his career path.