Sword master Bob Anderson dies aged 89

Bob Anderson, the sword-master who worked on Star Wars , The Lord Of The Rings and The Princess Bride , has died aged 89.

He passed away on 1 January, according to a statement by The British Academy of Fencing (via BBC News).

Brit Anderson was an Olympic fencer before he moved into the movies. He began his film career working on stunts, before becoming better known under the undeniably awesome job title of Sword Master.

Among the highlights on his filmography are Barry Lyndon , Highlander , The Princess Bride , The Lord Of The Rings trilogy and The Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl .

Anderson donned the iconic black helmet to play Darth Vader in the lightsaber duels of The Empire Strikes Back and Return Of The Jedi .

Peter Jackson led the tributes via his Facebook page : “I was thrilled when Bob Anderson agreed to come on board The Lord Of The Rings as our sword-master.

"In fact, it took a while for it to sink in that I was going to get to work with the same man who had helped create some of cinema's greatest fight sequences - from Star Wars to The Princess Bride . Bob was a brilliant swordsman and a gifted teacher; I will remember him as a wonderfully patient man, possessed of a terrific sense of humour.”

Anderson is survived by his wife and three children.

Matt Maytum is the former Editor of Total Film magazine. Over the past decade, Matt has worked in various roles for TF online and in print, including at GamesRadar+. 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.