OVERLAY REPORT

The oldest cast member of **"Star Wars: The Last Jedi" (2017)** during the time of filming was **Frank Oz**. ### Specific Details: * **Cast Member:** Frank Oz (born Richard Frank Oznowicz on May 25, 1944). * **Age at Time of Filming:** Principal photography for the film took place from **February 15, 2016**, to **July 22, 2016**. When filming began, Frank Oz was **71 years old**, and he turned **72** during the production. * **Role:** He reprised his iconic role as **Yoda**. ### Role Specifics and Production Detail: Frank Oz provided both the **voice and the puppeteering** for Yoda, who appears as a Force spirit to Luke Skywalker on the planet Ahch-To. In a departure from the prequel trilogy (where Yoda was primarily a CGI character), director Rian Johnson wanted to return to the aesthetic of the original trilogy. Consequently, a new practical puppet was created using the **original molds** from 1980’s *The Empire Strikes Back*. Oz's involvement was one of the production's most closely guarded secrets; to keep his return a surprise, his name was omitted from much of the pre-release marketing and credit lists. He performed on set at Pinewood Studios, working directly with Mark Hamill to recreate the master-student dynamic seen decades earlier. ### Other Veteran Cast Members: While other veteran actors from the franchise are part of the broader sequel trilogy, Frank Oz was the oldest performer to appear in *The Last Jedi*. * **Peter Mayhew** (Chewbacca) was technically six days older than Oz (born May 19, 1944), but he did not perform the role in this film due to health issues; he was instead credited as a **"Chewbacca Consultant,"** with Joonas Suotamo taking over all physical acting duties. * **Anthony Daniels** (C-3PO), another original trilogy veteran, was 70 years old during filming (born February 21, 1946). * **James Earl Jones** (Darth Vader) and **Harrison Ford** (Han Solo) did not appear in this installment. (Note: This summary was generated by Gemini 3.0 Flash + Search)