‘Back to the Future’ and ‘Star Wars’ Stuntman Dies: Bob Yerkes Was 92

Esteemed stuntman Bob Yerkes, whose work can be seen in films including Back to the Future, Return of the Jedi, and Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins, has died. He was 92. 

Yerkes passed away on Tuesday, Oct. 2, from natural causes, according to friend and fellow stunt performer Darlene Ava Williams. “I am horribly sad to hear that my mentor and stunt coach Bob Yerkes passed away this morning in Northridge, California,” Williams wrote on Facebook. “Bobby opened the door to his home and backyard to everyone that either needed a place to stay or to train for a job. Bobby knew my parents before I was born and knew me as a kid growing up in the circus. At one time, long before me, my dad and Bob performed in a flying trapeze act together in the circus. As a kid, I remember visiting his backyard. I remember watching him train celebrities and stunt people.”

Williams continued later in the post, “I am so thankful that we got to celebrate Bob Yerkes induction into the Circus Ring of Fame this year for Coach of the Year. I am so happy we got to also celebrate his 92nd birthday with him here in Sarasota.” The memorial concluded, “There will never be another Bob Yerkes! My heart is broken. I am proud and honored to have known him. He was a true legend!”

Yerkes was born on Feb. 11, 1932, in Los Angeles. At 15 years old, he ran away from home to join the DeWayne Bros. Circus when his parents divorced, and after did his first onscreen work in the 1948 films Julia Misbehaves and The Three Musketeers, as per The Hollywood Reporter. After serving in the Korean War, Yerkes returned to his beloved stunt work for 1954’s The Silver Chalice, 1956’s Trapeze, and 1959’s The Big Circus, as well as his performances with The Flying Artons and Ringling brothers.

Some of Yerkes’ most well-known stunts include sliding down the clock tower cable for Christopher Lloyd in 1985’s Back to the Future and flying as Boba Fett in 1983’s Return of the Jedi, a stunt filmed as a pickup shot in Yerkes’ very own backyard. In a 2017 interview with Movieguide, Yerkes also recalled his plummeting from a helicopter through a roof in 1975’s Breakout, starring Charles Bronson.

“I was getting ready for the stunt and the guy said, ‘Break a leg!’ and I broke them both,” he said of the injuries he suffered working on the film. Yerkes also revealed he broke his legs while working on 1988’s Who Framed Roger Rabbit and 1989’s Her Alibi, but said that in his eight decades of stuntwork, those were the only serious injuries he ever suffered.

Yerkes also performed stunts in Tough Guys, Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Ghostbusters, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Batman Forever, Commando, Magnolia, Poseidon, and The Back-Up Plan. His most recent work was done on the 2017 movie Killing Hasselhoff.

In February 2024, Yerkes was inducted into the Circus Ring of Fame, saying in his acceptance speech, “The circus was always my first love. I did a lot of movies and stunt work, too, but the circus was what I really enjoyed.” Yerkes is survived by son Mark, who also has worked as a stunt performer. His son Gerald passed away while serving in the Vietnam War.