Ron Cobb, 'Back to the Future' DeLorean designer, dead at 83

Cobb was a significant influence on the look and aesthetics of films including 'lien', 'Star Wars' and 'Back To The Future'. Photo: Screengrab

Film designer and cartoonist Ron Cobb died Thursday of Lewy body dementia at the age of 83. Cobb was a significant influence on the look and aesthetics of films including Alien, Star Wars and Back To The Future.

Cobb died on his birthday, Monday, after an illustrious career contributing to production design in Hollywood. He served as a consultant for Back To The Future, providing the initial designs for a DeLorean modified to travel through time, and several iconic alien species in the Star Wars universe.

His credits range from Star Wars creatures like the Gotals and Ithorians from the Mos Eisley Cantina sequence to various different aircrafts seen across the film industry, including Raiders Of The Lost Ark and 1978's Alien. In the latter, Cobb contributed to the exterior look of the Nostromo alien ship while also designing its interior sets to bring the vision to life on screen.