Special effects artist Carlo Rambaldi has died aged 86

By Matt Maytum
published

Best known for his work on Alien and E.T.

Carlo Rambaldi, the Oscar-winning special effects artist celebrated for his work on Alien and E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial , has died aged 86.

The Italian FX guru was entirely credited with the design and creation of Steven Spielberg’s heart-warming intergalactic visitor, and he also brought H.R. Giger’s vision for Ridley Scott’s xenomorph to horrifying life.

He was given visual effects Oscars for his work on those two sci-fi behemoths, and he also shared a special achievement Oscar for work on the 1976 version of King Kong .

Rambaldi began to make a name for himself on gory FX for Italian horror films, working alongside directors such as Mario Bava, Lucio Fulci and Dario Argento.

Before E.T. , Rambaldi worked with Spielberg on Close Encounters Of The Third Kind .

The last film he worked on was 1988’s Primal Rage (originally Rage, Furia Primitiva ), which was directed by his son, Vittorio.

Our thoughts go out to his family and friends.

Matt Maytum
Matt Maytum
Deputy Editor, Total Film

I'm the Deputy Editor at Total Film magazine, looking after the long-form features there, and generally obsessing over all things Nolan, Kubrick and Pixar. Over the past decade I've worked in various roles for TF online and in print, including at GamesRadar+, and you can often hear me nattering on the Inside Total Film podcast. Bucket-list-ticking career highlights have included reporting from the set of Tenet and Avengers: Infinity War, as well as covering Comic-Con, TIFF and the Sundance Film Festival.