Bolaji Badejo: The Nigerian giant who played 'Alien'

By Thomas Page, for CNN

Updated 0959 GMT (1759 HKT) October 31, 2016

Bolaji Badejo became one of cinema's most feared villains almost by accident. After a lengthy casting process, agent Peter Ardram came across Badejo in a pub in London. Thinking that the 6'10" Nigerian matched the thin, insect-like profile director Ridley Scott required, he arranged for the two to meet. (Image: courtesy<a href="http://www.mikesibthorp.com/" target="_blank"> Mike Sidthorp</a>.)
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Bolaji Badejo became one of cinema's most feared villains almost by accident. After a lengthy casting process, agent Peter Ardram came across Badejo in a pub in London. Thinking that the 6'10" Nigerian matched the thin, insect-like profile director Ridley Scott required, he arranged for the two to meet. (Image: courtesy Mike Sidthorp.)
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Badejo, seen here with dresser John Birkinshaw inside Bray Studios. The design for the alien's costume was the brainchild of H.R. Giger, who created concepts for many of the sets. Made from latex, the fitting process was long and arduous, not to mention uncomfortable for Badejo.
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Badejo, seen here with dresser John Birkinshaw inside Bray Studios. The design for the alien's costume was the brainchild of H.R. Giger, who created concepts for many of the sets. Made from latex, the fitting process was long and arduous, not to mention uncomfortable for Badejo.
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The costume's tail was controlled separately and made it difficult for Badejo to sit down between takes. When fully fitted, the creature stood seven feet tall -- not ideal considering the set of the spaceship Nostromo was only 6"7 high.
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The costume's tail was controlled separately and made it difficult for Badejo to sit down between takes. When fully fitted, the creature stood seven feet tall -- not ideal considering the set of the spaceship Nostromo was only 6"7 high.
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The alien Badejo played was the fully-grown iteration on the creature that sprang (spoiler alert!) from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JehjqlzXwIQ" target="_blank">John Hurt's chest</a> during the course of the film. According to special effects supervisor Nick Allder, the response to that scene was largely real -- none of the cast knew quite how graphic it would be.
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The alien Badejo played was the fully-grown iteration on the creature that sprang (spoiler alert!) from John Hurt's chest during the course of the film. According to special effects supervisor Nick Allder, the response to that scene was largely real -- none of the cast knew quite how graphic it would be.
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The alien's head, nearly a meter long, was at one point going to be filled with live maggots, says Allder. Whilst he was wearing it Badejo could barely see and had to take it off every 15 minutes to stop himself from overheating.
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The alien's head, nearly a meter long, was at one point going to be filled with live maggots, says Allder. Whilst he was wearing it Badejo could barely see and had to take it off every 15 minutes to stop himself from overheating.
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The gruesome alien played by Badejo as it appeared on screen.
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The gruesome alien played by Badejo as it appeared on screen.
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Despite his best efforts, the alien that terrorized The Nostromo (another spoiler alert!) never succeeded in finishing off all the crew. The film was Bolaji Badejo's only credit.
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Despite his best efforts, the alien that terrorized The Nostromo (another spoiler alert!) never succeeded in finishing off all the crew. The film was Bolaji Badejo's only credit.
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Badejo returned to Nigeria where he opened an art gallery some years later. He died from sickle cell disease in 1992. (Image: courtesy<a href="http://www.mikesibthorp.com/" target="_blank"> Mike Sidthorp</a>.)
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Badejo returned to Nigeria where he opened an art gallery some years later. He died from sickle cell disease in 1992. (Image: courtesy Mike Sidthorp.)
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Story highlights

  • Bolaji Badejo played Alien in his only on-screen credit
  • The six-foot-10-inch tall Nigerian was discovered in a London pub after a long casting process

(CNN)Dripping with menace, the alien in Ridley Scott's 1979 space horror classic was quite literally the movie's break-out star.

With an extendible jaw that salivated acid, it wasn't enough that "Alien" could capture and kill; it wanted to use humans unfortunate enough to cross its path as a surrogate womb as well.
    Yet while enthusiasts know much about the film's cast -- its heroine Ripley, played by Sigourney Weaver, and the unfortunate crew of the spaceship Nostromo -- the man behind the titular creature was nearly as elusive as his enduring on-screen character.
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      "Alien" was sold with the strap line "In space no one can hear you scream." Fittingly the actor in the suit, Bolaiji Badejo, was largely silent in his part in one of the 20th century's most celebrated films.
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      Read More
      The six-foot-10-inch tall Nigerian is no longer with us, dying from sickle cell disease in 1992. But by talking to those who knew him on set we can piece together the story of one of Hollywood's greatest villains -- and one of its unlikeliest actors.
      From squeezing into rubber suits to being covered in KY Jelly to mimic the appearance of acid, it was quite a way to earn your first film credit.

      Close encounters of the thirst kind

      Special effects supervisor Nick Allder laughs when recalling his first encounter with Badejo.