Drew Struzan, Legendary Movie Poster Artist, Dies at 78

Drew Struzan, the illustrator behind “Star Wars”, “Indiana Jones”, and some of Hollywood’s most iconic movie posters, passed away on October 13, 2025, at the age of 78. His death was confirmed by his official Instagram account.

 

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A post shared by Drew Struzan (@drewstruzanart)

Struzan had been living with Alzheimer’s disease. In March 2025, his wife, Dylan Struzan, shared that his health had declined to the point where he “can no longer paint or sign things.”

Born on March 18, 1947, in Oregon City, Oregon, Struzan moved to Los Angeles at age 18 to attend the ArtCenter College of Design. He initially supported himself with illustration work, including designing album covers, before transitioning into film poster art in the mid-1970s.

His big break came when he was recruited in 1977 to paint human characters for a re-release poster of Star Wars, working alongside Charles White III. That opportunity led to a long and fruitful collaboration with George Lucas and subsequent poster commissions for Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Back to the Future, Blade Runner, and Harry Potter, among others.

Steven Spielberg gave this statement about Struzan,

“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.”

Struzan designed more than 150 film posters over his career. Many of us grew up with his work.

It’s a sad day indeed.