Peter Mayhews Family Shares A Tearful Moment With Harrison Ford On Twitter

The family of actor Peter Mayhew sent a touching message straight out of the Star Wars saga in response to condolences from Harrison Ford .

Mayhew, who died on Tuesday at the age of 74 , was Chewbacca to Ford’s Han Solo in one of the most iconic on-screen duos in the history of cinema. But the affection was real off-screen, too. 

“We were partners in film and friends in life for over 30 years,” Ford said in a statement. “I loved him.” 

Mayhew’s death was announced by his family via his social media accounts. They took to Twitter to send this response to Ford:

The reply is a callback to an iconic on-screen moment between Han Solo and Carrie Fisher’s Princess Leia in “The Empire Strikes Back” (repeated in reverse in “Return of the Jedi” ):

Fisher died in 2016.

A memorial service will be held on June 29 for family and friends, Mayhew’s family said. A public event for fans will take place in Los Angeles in December.