Mark Hamill pays tribute to Kenny Baker

Mark Hamill has paid tribute to Kenny Baker.

The 64-year-old actor took to Twitter to pay tribute to his 81-year-old ‘Star Wars’ co-star – who passed away on Saturday (08.13.16) after a long illness.

Mark shared a collage of the actor and his ‘Star Wars’ robot R2-D2 and wrote: "Goodbye #KennyBaker A lifelong loyal friend-I loved his optimism & determination He WAS the droid I was looking for!"

Director Kevin Smith wrote: "Rest in Peace @starwars legend #KennyBaker – whose name I learned at age 7 because he brought #R2D2 to life. Feels like losing family…" while actor Rahul Kohli added: "You brought life to one of my favourite characters, thank you Kenny Baker. Rest in peace."

KT Tunstall tweeted: "Go well Kenny Baker, thankyou for the endless joy" and Josh Gad wrote: "#KennyBaker is gone. #RIPR2D2 You will live on in this galaxy for years to come!"

Guillermo del Toro also paid tribute, writing: "A great one- And, like Napoleon, his stature was measured not from head-to-ground but head-to-sky. A brilliant man."

Although initial reports suggested Kenny was 83 when he died, the actor’s biography on his official website gives his date of birth as 24th August, 1934.

Kenny’s niece Abigail Shield revealed he had been ill for some time, explaining to The Guardian: "It was expected, but it’s sad nonetheless. He had a very long and fulfilled life. He brought lots of happiness to people and we’ll be celebrating the fact that he was well loved throughout the world. We’re all very proud of what he achieved in his lifetime.

"He did extremely well in his life. He was very ill for the last few years so we had been expecting it. He had been looked after by one of his nephews, who found him on Saturday morning."

It is believed Kenny, who was found dead at his home in Preston, northwest England by his nephew and carer Drew Myserscough, suffered from lung problems.