Terence Stamp, Superman villain and ‘swinging 60s’ icon, dies aged 87
Stamp’s role as General Zod opposite Christopher Reeves’ Superman in 1978 thrust the Londoner into the full glare of Hollywood’s limelight
British actor Terence Stamp, the villain in Superman films and a star in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, has died at the age of 87, British media cited his family as announcing on Sunday.
“He leaves behind an extraordinary body of work, both as an actor and as a writer, that will continue to touch and inspire people for years to come,” the family of the “swinging 60s” icon said. The cause was not immediately known.
Stamp liked to recall how he was on the verge of becoming a tantric sex teacher at an ashram in India when, in 1977, he received a telegram from his London agent with news that he was being considered for the Superman film.
“I was on the night flight the next day,” Stamp said in an interview with his publisher Watkins Books in 2015.
After eight years largely out of work, landing the role of the arch-villain General Zod in Superman and Superman II turned the full glare of Hollywood’s limelight on the Londoner.
Buoyed by his new role, Stamp said he would respond to curious looks from passers-by with a command of “kneel before Zod, you b*****ds”, which usually went down a storm.