Bolaji Badejo

{{Infobox person

| name = Bolaji Badejo

| image = Bolaji Badejo in suit, 1979 by Mike Sibthorp.png

| image_size =

| caption = Badejo partially in costume on the set of Alien in 1979

| birth_date = {{Birth date|1953|8|23|df=y}}

| birth_place = Lagos, British Nigeria

| death_date = {{Death date and age|1992|12|22|1953|8|23|df=y}}

| death_place = Lagos, Nigeria

| death_cause = Sickle cell disease

| nationality = Nigerian

| occupation = {{hlist|Actor|visual artist}}

| years_active = 1979

| known_for = Alien (1979)

| height = {{height|cm=208}}

}}

Bolaji Badejo {{Pronunciation|Yo-Bolaji Badejo.ogg|Listen|(|help=no}} (23 August 1953 – 22 December 1992) was a Nigerian visual artist{{Cite news |url= http://hoycinema.abc.es/noticias/20160418/abci-alien-guerrero-actor-201604151948.html |title= Bolaji Badejo, dos metros y 18 centímetros de extrema delgadez dentro de Alien |last= Staff |date= 7 March 2016 |work= Hoy Cinema |access-date= 8 May 2016 |archive-date= 3 December 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161203083625/http://hoycinema.abc.es/noticias/20160418/abci-alien-guerrero-actor-201604151948.html |url-status= dead }} and actor. He was known for playing the Alien in Ridley Scott's 1979 film Alien.{{Cite news |last=Page |first=Thomas |date=7 March 2016 |title=Bolaji Badejo: The Nigerian giant who played 'Alien' |work=CNN |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2016/03/07/africa/bolaji-badejo-alien/ |access-date=28 November 2018}} He was {{convert|6|ft|10|in|cm}} tall, a height which convinced Scott to cast him in the role. It is his sole acting credit.

Life and career

Born in Lagos,{{cite web |url=https://entertainment.naij.com/309390-top-5-celebrities-who-were-born-in-nigeria.html |title=Top-5 Celebrities Who Were Born In Nigeria |website=Naij|date=22 October 2014 }} Badejo was of Yoruba descent{{Cite book |title=After Francis Bacon: Synaesthesia and Sex in Paint |last=Chare |first=Nicholas |publisher=Routledge |year=2017 |isbn=9781409411703 |location=Oxon |pages=164}} and was the son of the director general of the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation. He studied in Ethiopia, then in the United States before finally moving to London to specialize in graphic design.

Badejo was discovered in a Soho pub by a member of director Ridley Scott's casting team,{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nTIHmEmXe_IC&dq=Bolaji+Badejo&pg=PT78 |title=The Futurist: The Life and Films of James Cameron |last=Keegan |first=Rebecca |date=15 December 2009 |publisher=Crown/Archetype |isbn=9780307460332 |language=en}} who had been searching for a candidate to play the titular creature in his science fiction horror film Alien. Standing at 6 ft 10 inches in height, he was chosen to play the part due to his height and "very long legs".{{Cite web |date=2012-10-18 |title=Interview with Bolaji Badejo, 1979 |url=https://alienseries.wordpress.com/2012/10/18/interview-with-bolaji-badejo-1979/ |access-date=2022-05-17 |website=Strange Shapes |language=en}}{{Cite book |last=Scanlon |first=Paul |title=The Book of Alien |publisher=Titan Books |year=1979 |isbn=1-85286-483-4 |location=London}} He was described as "mild-mannered" and "withdrawn" on set, and special effects supervisor Nick Allder said "To have been the center of attraction… it was a bit of a shock to him."{{Cite web |last=Rennie |first=Daniel |date=2021-01-19 |title=Bolaji Badejo Terrified Audiences As The Xenomorph In 'Alien', And His Experience Inside The Suit Wasn't Much Better |url=https://boldentrance.com/bolaji-badejo-terrified-audiences-as-the-xenomorph-in-alien-and-his-experience-inside-the-suit-wasnt-much-better/ |access-date=2022-05-17 |website=Bold Entrance |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=How Bolaji Badejo's performance brought Alien's xenomorph to life |url=https://lwlies.com/articles/alien-xenomorph-bolaji-badejo-performance/ |access-date=2022-05-17 |website=Little White Lies |language=en}} Alien was released in 1979 to significant critical and commercial success,{{Cite web |title=Alien (1979) - Financial Information |url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Alien-(1979) |access-date=2022-05-17 |website=The Numbers}}{{Cite news |date=2015-09-03 |title=Why Alien is one of the most influential movies ever made: Howell |language=en-CA |work=The Toronto Star |url=https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/movies/2015/09/03/a-parasite-to-remember-why-alien-is-one-of-the-most-influential-movies-ever-made.html |access-date=2022-05-17 |issn=0319-0781}}{{Cite web |title=AFI's 10 TOP 10 |url=https://www.afi.com/afis-10-top-10/ |access-date=2022-05-17 |website=American Film Institute |language=en}} and Screen Rant wrote in a retrospective review that he "effectively brought the Xenomorph to life ... Badejo certainly helped make the creature one of the most recognizable monsters in horror."

The success of Alien spawned the Alien franchise. Badejo was offered a role in a sequel, but moved back to Nigeria in 1980; this led to the sequels incorporating more puppetry and animation alongside several suit performers. Alien is his sole film credit.{{Cite web |date=2022-05-16 |title=Alien Fan Poster Honors Often Uncredited Xenomorph Actor Bolaji Badejo |url=https://screenrant.com/alien-1979-art-xenomorph-actor-bolaji-badejo/amp/ |access-date=2022-05-17 |website=ScreenRant |language=en-US}}

After his return to Nigeria, Badejo began running his own art gallery in 1983. He died from sickle cell disease at the age of 39 in 1992.{{Cite web |date=2020-11-02 |title=Who played Alien's original Xenomorph? Meet the men behind film's most terrifying monsters |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2016/05/18/meet-the-man-behind-aliens-xenomorph-photos-show-the-actors-who/amp/ |access-date=2022-05-04 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201102100841/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2016/05/18/meet-the-man-behind-aliens-xenomorph-photos-show-the-actors-who/amp/ |archive-date=2 November 2020 |url-status=dead}}

Filmography

class="wikitable" \|+List of acting credits for Bolaji Badejo
Year ! Title ! Role ! Notes
1979 \| Alien \| Alien / Xenomorph \|Feature film{{Cite magazine \|date=2017-05-18 \|title=The Unsung Hero of the Alien Franchise: The Guy Inside the Xenomorph Suit \|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2017/05/alien-xenomorph-actor \|access-date=2022-05-17 \|magazine=Vanity Fair \|language=en-US}}

class="wikitable"

|+List of acting credits for Bolaji Badejo

Year

! Title

! Role

! Notes

1979

| Alien

| Alien / Xenomorph

|Feature film{{Cite magazine |date=2017-05-18 |title=The Unsung Hero of the Alien Franchise: The Guy Inside the Xenomorph Suit |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2017/05/alien-xenomorph-actor |access-date=2022-05-17 |magazine=Vanity Fair |language=en-US}}