Mark Dodson, a voiceover actor who brought to life various creatures in the ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Gremlins’ movies, has died at the age of 64. His daughter confirmed that he died of a massive heart attack on Saturday in a hotel room while attending the Evansville Horror Con in Indiana.
On Sunday, his talent agency, Stellar Appearances, also announced his death on their Instagram page. The agency wrote:
“Mark worked on dozens of movies, video games, commercials and advertisements adding his unique voice and sound to each character and script he touched…Mark truly loved his fans and enjoyed meeting them at conventions around the world..Mark leaves behind a wonderful family, close friends, and adoring fans around the world. The family asks for privacy during this difficult time.”
Mark Dodson was best known for voicing Salacious Crumb, the cackling sidekick of Jabba the Hutt, in ‘Star Wars: Return of the Jedi’ in 1983. He also voiced several other alien roles in ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ in 2015 and ‘Ewoks: The Battle for Endor’ in 1985.
In addition, he was the voice of the Mogwai and the Gremlins, the cute and mischievous creatures that turn into monsters, in ‘Gremlins’ in 1984 and ‘Gremlins 2: The New Batch’ in 1990. He also lent his voice to other films, such as ‘Day of the Dead’ in 1985, ‘Deadwood Park’ in 2007, and ‘Headcheese: The Movie’ in 2020.
