Younger audiences will remember him as Grand Moff Tarkin, aka the man who blew up Alderan in the first-ever Star Wars film. But actor Peter Cushing was an icon in his own right long before the sci-fi franchise became his most iconic performance. Peter Cushing's career is one that spans over 50 years and includes hundreds of credits for stage roles, film and television, and radio serials. He was an instrumental part of the Hammer Company's iconic horror films where he worked with other future Star Wars actors like Christopher Lee.
In fact, him and Christopher Lee worked very closely together before Cushing's death in 1994. Peter Cushing has played numerous iconic characters, like Sherlock Holmes, Dracula, Baron Frankenstein, and he even played Doctor Who a few times. However, Whovians and sci-fi nerds do not count his films as part of the true Doctor Who canon, and for fair reasons. Cushing is, in a way, an underappreciated icon. Yes, his presence in Star Wars is so important he was brought back to life for the series via CGI, but there really is more to Cushing's career than his one time stint as Grand Moff. So, let's pay tribute to this late-British actor and remember he was more than the nefarious agent of the Empire who tortured Leia and bossed around Vader.
7 Laurence Olivier's Hamlet
Cushing struggled to get his start in the theater because he had issues with reciting lines and diction. After an intense dedication to improving his craft, he began a career in theater in 1935 and eventually made his way to film and television. One of Cushing's breakthrough films came in 1948 when he landed the role of Orsic in Laurence Oliver's film adaptation of Hamlet, which is one of the most iconic adaptations of the play. For the less literary readers, Orsic was the referee of the climactic duel between Hamlet and Laertes.
6 A Made For TV Adaptation Of George Orwell's '1984'
Cushing regularly earned high praise for his roles and his willingness to dive deep into character, whether the role was a lighthearted or serious one. One of his most serious and critically claimed performances came in 1958 when he starred as the main character in a made for TV film adaptation of George Orwell's dystopian novel 1984. The TV play terrorized the nation and caused a huge, controversial, stir.
5 Sherlock Holmes In 'The Hound of The Baskervilles'
While not as iconic in the role as his contemporary Sir Basil Rathbone, Cushing had more than one stint as the famous detective for film, television, and radio. Most notable of his performances as Sherlock was in the 1958 adaptation of The Hound of The Baskervilles.
4 Peter Cushing Played The Doctor From 'Doctor Who' Twice
Doctor Who fans will have strong feelings about this but it cannot be ignored that Cushing played the Doctor not once, but twice. However, he is widely considered to not be a part of the official Doctor Who canon, as the two films he was in Dr. Who and The Daleks and Daleks: Invasion of Earth were not part of the show's storyline and had no connection to the televised series other than the character's name, Doctor Who, and the use of the TARDIS. In the show, the Doctor is an alien called a time lord, in the films with Cushing he is merely an eccentric human inventor who happens to figure out time travel. Although not canon, the films do pit Cushing's doctor against the Doctor's greatest foes, the Daleks.
3 Dracula And Dr. Van Helsing
Cushing's biggest claim to fame besides Star Wars was his tenure in the Hammer Horror films where he acted opposite Christopher Lee. In the films where Lee iconically played Dracula, Cushing plaid his foil and rival, the righteous vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing. Cushing and Lee did switch roles for one Hammer film, The Horror of Dracula. Films with Christopher Lee as Dracula include Dracula AD 1972, The Brides of Dracula, The Satanic Rites of Dracula, and countless others. Lee and Cushing also acted with each other in Hammer's adaptation of The Mummy.
2 Baron Victor Von Frankenstein
Cushing did too many Hammer films to count, and besides his rounds as Van Helsing, he was also the actor the company most frequently cast as Dr. Victor Frankenstein, the made doctor who spends his life trying to kill the monster he created. Interestingly enough, Cushing's version of Frankenstein is more sympathetic than others, like he is a man trying to correct his mistake and not a mad doctor. Titles include The Revenge of Frankenstein, The Curse of Frankenstein, and Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed.
1 Star Wars: Roque One (Sort Of)
For the record, Cushing has been dead since 1994, but his face and portrayal of Grand Moff Tarkin are so essential to the Star Wars canon and main storyline that producers decided to CGI his appearance over actor Guy Henry in Star Wars: Rogue One, one of the first of the extended universe Star Wars films made. While some found it unsettling that a dead man's face was used to make a film, it does speak to how iconic Peter Cushing's performance was.
