Kenny Baker Net Worth

What is Kenny Baker's Net Worth?

Kenny Baker was an English actor, comedian, and musician who had a net worth of $2 million. Kenny Baker is best known for playing R2-D2 in the "Star Wars" film series, and he is also known for his roles in such films as "The Elephant Man," "Time Bandits," "Amadeus," and "Labyrinth." On television, he appeared in episodes of "Casualty" and "Swiss Toni" and was in the BBC adaptation of "Prince Caspian and the Voyage of the Dawn Treader."

Early Life and Education

Kenny Baker was born on August 24, 1934 in Birmingham, England to Ethel and Harold. His mother was a pianist and dressmaker, while his father was an artist, musician, and draughtsman. Baker was born with dwarfism, and reached a maximum height of 3'8″ in adulthood. After his parents divorced, he lived with his father, stepmother, and stepsister in Hastings. Baker was educated at a boarding school in Kent.

Career Beginnings

Because of his dwarfism, Baker was approached on the street in 1951 by a woman who invited him to join John Lester's theatrical troupe of little people. He later spent some time in a circus and performed in ice-skating shows. With fellow little person Jack Purvis, Baker formed a successful comedy act called the Minitones and performed in nightclubs.

Star Wars

Baker debuted his most famous role in his very first film, George Lucas's 1977 space opera "Star Wars." He played the robot R2-D2, the companion of fellow robot C-3PO. The character's voice was provided by Anthony Daniels.

"Star Wars" was a gigantic hit, and Baker reprised his role in the sequels "The Empire Strikes Back" (1980) and "Return of the Jedi" (1983). In the latter film, he also played the Ewok named Paploo. Because of the evolution of technology, Baker's role was significantly reduced in the "Star Wars" prequel trilogy that began in 1999, with R2-D2 largely being depicted using CGI and radio-controlled props. For the first film in the sequel trilogy, "The Force Awakens" (2015), Baker served as a consultant for the character, who was now being played by Jimmy Vee.

GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images

Other Acting Roles

Before "Star Wars," Baker had appeared in episodes of the British television series "Man of the World" and "Dave Allen at Large." His first film role after "Star Wars" was in the 1978 British film "Wombling Free," an adaptation of the children's television series "The Wombles." In 1980, Baker appeared in the space opera superhero film "Flash Gordon" and David Lynch's historical biopic "The Elephant Man." He went on to play Fidgit, a member of a group of thieving dwarfs, in Terry Gilliam's 1981 fantasy adventure film "Time Bandits." The same year, Baker appeared in the "Snow White 2" special episode of the comedy television series "The Goodies." In 1982, he had a brief part in the CBS television film adaptation of "The Hunchback of Notre Dame." A couple of years later, Baker played Parody Commendatore in Miloš Forman's Oscar Best Picture-winning film "Amadeus," based on the stage play about the titular 18th-century composer. He followed that with roles in Neil Jordan's neo-noir "Mona Lisa" and Jim Henson's musical fantasy "Labyrinth," both in 1986.

In 1987, Baker played an elf in "Sleeping Beauty," a contemporary film version of the classic tale made as part of the Cannon Movie Tales series. The next year, he had an uncredited part in Ron Howard's fantasy adventure film "Willow." Concluding the decade, Baker appeared alongside Jack Purvis as one half of the Dufflepuds in the BBC adaptation of "Prince Caspian and the Voyage of the Dawn Treader," the second installment in the BBC's "Chronicles of Narnia" series based on the C. S. Lewis books. In the early 1990s, he guest-starred on the comedy series "Ben Elton: The Man from Auntie" and the medical drama series "Casualty." Baker also played Casanova in the 1993 science-fiction spoof film "U.F.O." At the end of the decade, he appeared in the direct-to-video film "Boobs in the Wood" and lent his voice to the animated musical film "The King and I." Baker didn't act as much in the 21st century. Besides his continued work in the "Star Wars" films, he appeared on television in an episode of "Swiss Toni" and had another guest role on "Casualty."

Personal Life

In 1970, Baker married his wife Eileen, who also had dwarfism. They had two children together, both of average height. The couple remained together until Eileen's passing in 1993.

On August 13, 2016, Baker passed away. His funeral was held 11 days later on what would have been his 82nd birthday, at the Park Cemetery and Crematorium in Lytham St Annes.

Who's Richer?

Kenny
Baker

Compare!

Anthony
Daniels