Les Dilley, Oscar-Winning ‘Star Wars’ Art Director, Dies at 84

His credits also include "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and "Alien" The post Les Dilley, Oscar-Winning ‘Star Wars’ Art Director, Dies at 84 appeared first on TheWrap.

May 24, 2025 - 17:40

Les Dilley, the Oscar-winning production designer of “Star Wars: A New Hope” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” has died from complications associated with Alzheimer’s. He was 84.

“With sadness, I’m writing to share the news that Les Dilley has passed away. An Oscar winner for his work on ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ and ‘Star Wars’, Les contributed his artistic talents to a great number of beloved and classic films and series, including ‘Alien’, ‘The Abyss’, ‘The Empire Strikes Back’, ‘Superman’, and ‘An American Werewolf in London’,” Matt Andrée Wiltens, Head of Global Corporate Communications at Gersh, said in a statement shared with TheWrap.

“Les’s legacy lives on in the many iconic films he helped bring to life
for over six decades and in his family home he personally built as an homage to his work,” Dilley’s family said in a statement. “His love for the motion picture business was evident to the very end. When he wasn’t on set, he enjoyed constructing things in his workshop at home, playing ice hockey, and a good cup of tea. In addition to his incredible work ethic, quirky British humour, and love of life, he was a dedicated and loving husband, father, grandfather and friend to many. He will be greatly missed.”

Dilley won two Oscars for Best Art Direction for his work on “Star Wars” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” He also was nominated for “Alien,” “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back,” and “The Abyss.”

In a 2020 interview with Buzz Magazine, Dilley admitted “The Abyss” was “the most challenging” project of the three. “It was over a year’s worth of work, very long days with a few nights until 3am, and on weekends the art department did not stop, so I was continually checking on the construction being done,” he explained. “I had worked with water on ‘Legend’, ‘Never Say Never Again’ and ‘Lucky Lady’, so I had some experience with water, but nothing close to the scale of ‘The Abyss’. Also, my wife Leslie and I had the first of our four children during that film, so that made that time even more memorable.

Dilley was also the person responsible for protecting beloved “Star Wars” droid R2-D2 on set — and he was the person who convinced Kenny Baker to take on the the role. “I actually had to go to Kenny’s home and convince him to take on the role! It’s hard to imagine that at the time he was vacillating between ‘Star Wars’ and appearing with a partner on ‘Opportunity Knocks’,” Dilley also told Buzz. “Thankfully ‘Star Wars’ won out.”

Dilley’s work in art production included building sets for the films he was part of. He was also responsible for the Sandcrawler and Luke Skywalker’s Landspeeder, as well as the person who designed the outside of the Mos Eisley Cantina.

More to come…

The post Les Dilley, Oscar-Winning ‘Star Wars’ Art Director, Dies at 84 appeared first on TheWrap.