Andrew Jack, the dialect coach who played Major Caluan Ematt in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, has died at the age of 76 from complications due to coronavirus pandemic, also known as COVID-19.
Jack’s representative, Jill McCullough, told TMZ he passed away on Tuesday in a hospital outside of London.
According to McCullough, Jack’s wife, Gabrielle Rogers, couldn’t be by his side because she was also in quarantine in Australia.
TMZ noted that the family might be unable to arrange for a proper funeral for Jack due to the recommendation of social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic.
The news of Jack’s death comes soon after he was hired to serve as a dialect coach on the upcoming Batman movie, starring Robert Pattinson as the caped crusader.
Production on the movie in the U.K. was shut down on March 14 due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Tributes on Twitter
Fans, colleagues and movie stars who worked with Andrew Jack in the past have been paying tribute to him on Twitter.
We lost a man today. Andrew Jack was diagnosed with Coronavirus 2 days ago. He was in no pain, and he slipped away peacefully knowing that his family were all 'with' him.
Take care out there, lovers x@RealHughJackman @chrishemsworth @RobertDowneyJr pic.twitter.com/fm5LevA8n2
— Gabrielle Rogers (@GabrielleRoger1) March 31, 2020
Just heard the devastating news of the passing of Andrew Jack from Covid 19. Our beloved dialect coach and cameo player on Star Wars. An absolute gentleman. May he RIP. My thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones. pic.twitter.com/yy86iGiQ4r
— Samantha Alleyne (@samkkalleyne) March 31, 2020
I am extremely saddened by the death of Andrew Jack, Major Ematt in #TheForceAwakens and #TheLastJedi. Andrew lost his fight with #COVID19. Do not underestimate this virus. Stay home, people. pic.twitter.com/ygOuHmTnWh
— Eric Pfeifer (@_EricPfeifer) March 31, 2020
Andrew Jack’s death comes after the Grammy Award-winning country music star, Jeff Diffie, died from coronavirus complications on Sunday.
The veteran stage and screen actor, Mark Blum, also died on Wednesday, March 25, at the age of 69, as a result of contracting COVID-19.
Who was Andrew Jack?
Andrew Jack was born in London in January 1944 to actor Stephen Jack and Julia Hutchinson. He served as a dialect coach for movies and theatrical producers for more than three decades, his website states.
Jack’s role as a dialect coach involved teaching movie stars about different accents and dialects to effect change for their roles.
Jack got his big break as a dialect coach when he was hired to coach British actor Julian Glover so he could take on an American accent for his role in Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade (1989).
He served as a dialect coach for actors in a number of blockbuster movies, including Star Wars, Avengers: Endgame, Lord of the Rings, Alien V. Predator, and Captain American: The First Avenger.
Jack worked with stars such as Pierce Brosnan, Robert Downey, Jr., Christian Bale, Chris Hemsworth, and John Boyega. He worked with Pierce Brosnan on his James Bond action movies, including GoldenEye, Die Another Day, and Tomorrow Never Dies.
He was an expert in many accents and dialects, including American, Chinese, and Japanese, according to TMZ.
Jack was credited with training the British actor John Boyega — who played Finn in the Star Star Wars sequel trilogy films — to speak with an American accent.
He also helped develop the exotic dialects featured in the Lord of The Rings film trilogy directed by Peter Jackson, according to the Daily Mail.
Andrew Jack was also an actor. He played Resistance Major Caluan Ematt in the first two installments of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Star Wars: The Last Jedi.