Brian Johnson, who won an Academy Award for his work as SFX supervisor on Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, passed away on June 15th aged 86, just two weeks shy of his 87th birthday.
Brian won the 1980 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects (shared with Nick Allder, Dennis Ayling, H. R. Giger and Carlo Rambaldi) for his work on Alien, before working on The Empire Strikes Back whose SFX were recognised with a Special Achievement Academy Award in 1981 (shared with Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren and Bruce Nicholson).
Our ILM community was deeply saddened at the loss of Brian Johnson. We collaborated with the special effects supervisor on Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, Dragonslayer, and years later, Dragonheart. We celebrate Brian's masterful work in the art of cinema, which also included… pic.twitter.com/hzqpQtTNcU
— Industrial Light & Magic (@ILMVFX) June 17, 2026
Team Jedi News sends our condolences to Brian’s family and friends at this difficult time.
