Bolaji Badejo (22 March 1957 – 22 July 1992) was a Nigerian‑born American actor and model, best known for portraying the alien creature in Nicolas Roeg’s 1979 science‑fiction film The Man Who Fell to Earth. His extraordinary height—reported at approximately 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)—made him a distinctive physical presence in the role, which required a performer of unusual stature to convey the otherworldly character.
Early life and education
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Badejo attended secondary school in his home country before moving to the United States in the late 1970s. He pursued studies in architecture at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where his height attracted the attention of casting directors.
Film career
In 1978, director Nicolas Roeg was seeking an actor of extraordinary height to portray the alien in The Man Who Fell to Earth. Badejo was selected after a casting call specifically aimed at individuals over six feet tall. His performance, though largely non‑verbal, contributed to the film’s distinctive visual style and has been noted in retrospectives of 1970s science‑fiction cinema.
Later life and death
Following his film appearance, Badejo did not pursue further acting roles and returned to work in architecture and modeling. He died on 22 July 1992 in Los Angeles, California, from complications related to AIDS, at the age of 35.
Legacy
Badejo’s singular contribution to The Man Who Fell to Earth remains a point of interest for scholars of genre film and for discussions of representation of non‑human characters in cinema. His unique physical attributes and brief yet memorable screen presence continue to be referenced in analyses of the film’s production history.
