Drew Struzan, the illustrator whose hand-painted posters helped define the look of blockbusters from “Star Wars” to “Indiana Jones,” died on October 13, 2025, at age 78. Over five decades, Struzan produced more than 150 film one-sheets, including imagery for “Back to the Future,” “Blade Runner,” “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,” “The Goonies,” “The Shawshank Redemption,” and multiple “Harry Potter” entries, cementing a style that blended photorealism with montage portraiture. His breakthrough came with the 1978 rerelease poster for “Star Wars,” leading to long collaborations with George Lucas and Steven Spielberg.
Struzan’s family said he died from complications of Alzheimer’s disease; his wife, Dylan, had revealed his diagnosis earlier in 2025. Tributes poured in from across the industry, with Spielberg praising how Struzan’s posters turned movies into “destinations”. Although Struzan retired from full-time poster work in 2008, he periodically returned for select projects, and his legacy was chronicled in the 2013 documentary “Drew: The Man Behind the Poster”.
