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Steve Maslow, the genius behind the famous Star Wars soundtrack, has passed away at the age of 81. Best known for creating Oscar-winning soundtracks such as The Empire Strikes Back, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Speed, and for four other career nominations, died from cancer at a therapy facility in West Hills on April 27, 2026.

During his career, he worked on 200 plus features, teaming with fellow mixer Gregg Landaker on more than 130 of them, starting with Star Trek: The Motion Picture in 1979. He specialised in dialogue and music while Landaker focused on sound effects, and he shared all his Oscar noms with him with the exception of Dune.

Fans poured in tributes online after the news broke out. One user commented online: Another behind-the-scenes legend, gone. May he rest in peace. Thank you, Steve, for all the entertainment."

Another commented: "Thank you Steve, for all the lives you've touched through your immersive sound work."

In a Facebook post, Star Wars World captioned: "From the unforgettable sounds of Star Wars to decades of legendary filmmaking, his legacy will live. May through the movies he helped bring to life, may the Force be with you always."

With another commenting: "I always played that Darth Vader entrance in my head whenever my boss starts coming towards us."

Maslow was born on Oct. 17, 1944. His father worked for Mattel toys, and his mother was a legal secretary. After graduating from Grant High School, he hooked up as a roadie in 1969 with the Strawberry Alarm Clock, setting up the sound for the psychedelic rock band that had a big hit with Incense and Peppermint.

"That opened up the whole music industry for me," he said in 2017, and as a recording engineer, he served as a mixer on songs including Oh What a Night (December 1963) from Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons and Boogie Oogie Oogie from A Taste of Honey.