Bolaji Badejo (Listen^ⓘ) (23 August 1953 – 22 December 1992) was a Nigerian visual artist^[1] and actor. He was known for playing the Alien in Ridley Scott's 1979 film Alien.^[2] He was 6 feet 10 inches (208 cm) tall,^[2] a height which convinced Scott to cast him in the role. It is his sole acting credit.

Born in Lagos,^[3] Badejo was of Yoruba descent^[4] and was the son of the director general of the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation.^[2] He first studied in Nigeria, then in the United States before finally moving to London to specialize in graphic design.^[2]

Badejo was discovered in a Soho pub by a member of director Ridley Scott's casting team,^[5] who had been searching for a candidate to play the titular creature in his science fiction horror film Alien. Standing at 6 ft 10 in tall,^[2] he was chosen to play the part due to his height and "very long legs".^[6][7] He was described as "mild-mannered" and "withdrawn" on set, and special effects supervisor Nick Allder said "To have been the center of attraction… it was a bit of a shock to him."^[8][9] Alien was released in 1979 to significant critical and commercial success,^{[10][11][12][13][14]} and Screen Rant wrote in a retrospective review that he "effectively brought the Xenomorph to life ... Badejo certainly helped make the creature one of the most recognizable monsters in horror."^[15]

The success of Alien spawned the Alien franchise. Badejo was offered a role in a sequel,^[8] but moved back to Nigeria in 1980; this led to the sequels incorporating more puppetry and animation alongside several suit performers. Alien is his sole film credit.^[16][15]

After his return to Nigeria, Badejo began running his own art gallery in 1983.^[2][9] He died from sickle cell disease at the age of 39.^[16]

• Creature actor