- Artist Drew Struzan was recognized for his distinctive style capturing film characters and emotions.
- His collaborations with Steven Spielberg and George Lucas led to defining movie posters of the era.
- Fan and industry tributes highlighted Struzan's impact on cinema and visual storytelling.
Drew Struzan, the artist behind a number of iconic movie posters over multiple decades, died on Monday at age 78 after struggling for several years with Alzheimer’s disease.
Struzan’s official Instagram account announced the news of his death 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. 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.”
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Struzan was a go-to artist for Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, creating the posters for popular films such as “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” “Risky Business,” the “Star Wars” sequel “The Empire Strikes Back,” and “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.”
Struzan’s signature style was bold, dramatic and colorful, and he was known for his ability to capture a film’s tone, according to his fans. The posters also focused heavily on the film’s characters, often filling a single image with a sprawling ensemble cast.
In March, Struzan’s wife, Dylan, posted on Facebook, announcing that his health was declining, per Deadline.
“Drew can no longer paint or sign things for you. He is not enjoying a well-deserved retirement but rather fighting for his life,” she wrote.
The artist’s work was chronicled in a 2013 documentary titled “Drew: The Man Behind the Poster” from director Erik Sharkey.
Who is Drew Struzan?
Struzan was born on March 18, 1947, in Oregon City, Oregon. At age 18, he moved to California to study at the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, per Deadline.
He paid for school by selling his artwork and, while living in Los Angeles, found work as a local artist for Pacific Eye & Ear, working under the direction of artist Ernie Cefalu.
Struzan designed album covers for a number of artists, including The Beach Boys, Bee Gees and Earth Wind & Fire, according to Variety. While working at Pacific Eye & Ear, he began working on promotional movie posters in 1975, starting with artwork for smaller budget films such as “Empire of the Ants” and “Squirm.”
In 1978, he was recruited to help with the poster design for the rerelease of “Star Wars,” brought on to help paint the human characters. The project launched a long-running collaboration with Struzan for Lucas’ iconic franchise.
He then began illustrating more posters for movies like “Blade Runner,” “The Muppet Movie” and “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.”
He announced his retirement in 2008, but came out of retirement to design posters for the 2015 “Star Wars” film “The Force Awakens,” Stephen King’s “The Dark Tower,” “Batkid Begins: The Wish Heard Around the World” and the “How To Train Your Dragon” trilogy.
During an interview in 2021, Struzan detailed the creative process behind his posters, highlighting that he worked to showcase the best of the actors and of the movie, per Variety.
“I felt that art was more than just telling the story. I’m looking to give a person a feeling about something they could hope for,” he said.
Icons of the film industry react to Struzan’s death
Following the announcement of Struzan’s death, reactions and tributes began to pour in from various people within the film industry who worked with the artist.
In a statement, Spielberg wrote: “Drew made event art. His posters made many of our movies into destinations … and the memory of those movies and the age we were when we saw them always comes flashing back just by glancing at his iconic photorealistic imagery. In his own invented style, nobody drew like Drew.”
According to The Hollywood Reporter, director Guillermo del Toro also wrote about Struzan’s death, saying: “The world lost a genial man, a genius communicator and supreme artist. I lost a friend — beloved Drew.”
Lucas also spoke about the artist’s death, saying: “Drew was an artist of the highest order. His illustrations fully captured the excitement, tone and spirit of each of my films his artwork represented. His creativity, through a single illustrated image, opened up a world full of life in vivid color … even at a glance. I was lucky to have worked with him time and time again.”
Another tribute came from Batman artist and president of DC Jim Lee, who wrote: “A giant among giants. His work captured the humanity, power and emotion of his subjects in ways not seen since. Thank you for bringing to life all the tent-pole moments of my childhood and beyond,” per The Hollywood Reporter.
Fans react to Drew Struzan’s death
Tributes to Struzan didn’t just come from giants within the film industry, but a number of fans also took to social media to share their appreciation for the artist’s work.
Here is a look at some of these tribute posts from fans: