Jump to content

Joonas Suotamo

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 2a02:c7d:ca6:4500:a4cc:870:43a5:1e2e (talk) at 18:42, 21 February 2017. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Joonas Suotamo
Playing for Lappeenrannan NMKY in Kotka, 2010
Born (1986-10-03) October 3, 1986 (age 38)
Espoo, Uusimaa, Finland
EducationPennsylvania State University (B.A., 2008)
Notable workStar Wars: The Force Awakens
Height209 cm (6 ft 10 in)
Websitejoonassuotamo.com

Joonas Viljami Suotamo (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈjoːnɑs ˈsuotɑmo]; born October 3, 1986) is a Finnish basketball player and actor. He is 2.09 m (6 ft 10 in) tall.

Suotamo attended Pennsylvania State University (PSU) and played the power forward and center positions for the Penn State Nittany Lions. With childhood interests in music, arts, and movies he studied film and video at PSU. He was a body double for the Chewbacca character played by Peter Mayhew in Star Wars: The Force Awakens and will do the same again for Star Wars: The Last Jedi and the Untitled Han Solo film.[1][2]

As a youth, Suotamo performed roles as a stage actor. He was a strong academic performer at Penn State, where he was twice named to the Academic All-Big Ten team, and graduated in 3.5 years with a Bachelor of Arts degree in December 2008 in order to fulfill his Finnish conscription service and to pursue a career in film.[3] He played professionally in Europe for the Espoo team from 2011-2015.[4] Suotamo is an actor and musician but his height limits available acting roles so he's also concentrating on directing.[5] He has also sold insurance.[6]

References

  1. ^ Parfitt, Orlando (18 Dec 2015). "JJ Abrams On The New Chewbacca, Episode 8 And That Daniel Craig Cameo". Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved 2015-12-28.
  2. ^ English, Rebecca. "Princes William and Harry meet Star Wars' Daisy Ridley and John Boyega at Pinewood studios | Daily Mail Online". Dailymail.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-12-21.
  3. ^ "Suotamo To Graduate Early; Forgo Final Year With Nittany Lion Basketball Program". Penn State Nittany Lions. 25 Sep 2008. Retrieved 2015-12-28.
  4. ^ "Joonas Suotamo player profile". eurobasket.com. Retrieved 2015-12-28.
  5. ^ "Joonas Suotamo: Hollywood Confidential". Penn State Nittany Lions. 17 Dec 2007. Retrieved 2015-12-28.
  6. ^ Entertainment (2016-01-05). "Joonas Suotamo: Chewbacca's double in 'The Force Awakens'". Business Insider. Retrieved 2016-12-21.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joonas_Suotamo&oldid=766714153"