What The Cast Of Princess Bride Looks Like Today

The Princess Bride is a classic fantasy adventure tale, filled with brave heroes and loathsome villains, quests both noble and true, swooning romance, delightful set pieces, action, pirates, swordplay, death, resurrection, and Rodents of Unusual Size. Adapted from William Goldman's 1973 novel, the most memorable part of Rob Reiner's rollicking 1987 film, apart from its eminently quotable screenplay (let's pause here to mutter "As you wish," "Inconceivable!" or "My name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die!") are its wonderful characters. Nearly all are new and delightful spins on old bedtime story archetypes, and it took the perfect cast to pull it off. The Princess Bride represents the intersection of the careers of many legendary entertainment figures and rising stars. Some were finishing up prolific and interesting careers, while others were on their way to making their mark on Hollywood. Here's what the main cast of The Princess Bride has been up to in recent years.

Cary Elwes started picking up steady film work with 1984's Another Country, but he really made American audiences' acquaintances with his role as Westley, the stableboy-turned-suave adventurer with a heart of gold in The Princess Bride. The part sent the actor off on a long line of playing heroic characters, appearing in films like Robin Hood: Men in Tights and Glory, while still making room for the occasional villainous foray, such as his roles in The Jungle Book and Ella Enchanted; he's also known to horror fans through his recurring role as Dr. Lawrence Gordon in the Saw franchise.

Elwes spends most of his time nowadays as a guest star, stopping by shows like Psych, The X-Files, Leverage, Family Guy and Perception. He starred on the Crackle series The Art of More opposite Dennis Quaid and Kate Bosworth, exploring the seedy underbelly of New York City auction houses; more recently, he was seen in the third season of Stranger Things as the villainous Mayor Larry Kline, as well as several episodes of Amazon's The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. He's also a writer, co-penning the script for the historic comedy Elvis & Nixon, which debuted on Amazon in 2016 as their first feature. In 2014, he also wrote a memoir about his time on the The Princess Bride, titled As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride.

Robin Wright was a soap opera star before landing the role of Princess Buttercup in The Princess Bride, beaming into living rooms as Kelly Capwell on NBC's Santa Barbara from 1984 to 1988. After making the leap to film, she displayed a terrific knack for choosing solid scripts; aside from The Princess Bride, some of her more widely seen releases include Forrest Gump, The Singing Detective, Message in a Bottle and She's So Lovely, which she starred in alongside her then-husband Sean Penn.

In more recent years, she's moved into dramas, with memorable roles in films like A Most Wanted Man, Moneyball, and David Fincher's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo — the film that would eventually lead to her award-winning role as Claire Underwood on Netflix's House of Cards. Wright hadn't made a full-time return to television since leaving Santa Barbara, but Fincher knew he wanted her for the part in the streaming drama, which he executive produced.

The role has been a boon for Wright creatively, resulting in a Golden Globe win in 2014 and a career resurgence which helped her land the part of Wonder Woman's aunt, General Antiope, in the big-screen adaptation of the heroine's origin story. She also appeared in Ridley Scott's Blade Runner 2049.

Mandy Patinkin was already a well-known film, TV, and stage actor before starring as Inigo Montoya in The Princess Bride. Patinkin had recently appeared in Yentl and had already won a Tony Award for playing Che in Evita when he took on the role of the revenge-minded swordsman.

Despite dealing with some health issues (he had two corneal transplants while fighting the eye disease keratoconus in the '90s and was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2004), Patinkin has continued to enjoy success. Shortly after The Princess Bride, he took a role on Chicago Hope, earning himself an Emmy and multiple Golden Globe nominations; however, the actor quit because he had to spend so much time away from his family while filming in New York.

He then landed a lead role on Criminal Minds, but left the show after the second season, saying that he found the content too disturbing. The departure left him worried about whether or not he would ever go back to television again. "The biggest public mistake I ever made was that I chose to do Criminal Minds in the first place," Patinkin said in an interview with New York Magazine. "I thought it was something very different. I never thought they were going to kill and rape all these women every night, every day, week after week, year after year. It was very destructive to my soul and my personality. After that, I didn't think I would get to work in television again."

However, Patinkin did eventually decide to go back to television, landing the role of CIA exec Saul Berenson on Showtime's Homeland. The actor has earned multiple Golden Globe and Emmy nominations for the role.

Going into his role as the villainous and vain Prince Humperdinck in The Princess Bride, Chris Sarandon had already earned himself an Oscar and Golden Globe nomination for his performance as Al Pacino's transgender wife in Dog Day Afternoon. The actor enjoyed a fairly successful career throughout the 1980s and '90s, appearing in films like Fright Night, Child's Play and The Stranger Within. In 1993, he lent his voice to Jack Skellington in The Nightmare Before Christmas, a role which he would reprise in various Kingdom Hearts and other Disney video games over the 2000s. Other voice work includes the role of Count Dracula on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles television series.

Sarandon's also booked a variety of guest-starring roles, appearing on shows like Cold Case, Psych, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and, most recently, Orange is the New Black. He has also worked in theater, appearing in the musical Preludes at the Lincoln Center Theater in 2015, and he's appeared in indie films like I Smile Back and Big Stone Gap. "I'm playing a lot of fathers — the march of time!" he told the Los Angeles Times in 2015.

Christopher Guest entered his role as the six-fingered Count Rugen fresh off a season as a writer and performer on Saturday Night Live, as well as a stint writing, composing and acting in This Is Spın̈al Tap. The star, who has been married to Jamie Lee Curtis since 1984, has continued to have a long career as an actor, writer, director, and composer.

Guest wrote, directed and starred in Waiting for Guffman in 1996 and then directed Chris Farley and Matthew Perry in 1998's western comedy Almost Heroes. His 2000 film Best in Show, which he wrote, directed and starred in, earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Comedy, while his 2003 film A Mighty Wind earned an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song.

More recently, the actor, who has become known for crafting hilarious mockumentaries, is the creative mind behind Netflix's Mascots, which he created and stars in along with frequent collaborators Jane Lynch, Bob Balaban, and Jennifer Coolidge.

It would be inconceivable for Wallace Shawn not to have a successful career after his memorable role in The Princess Bride—which is just another way of saying he's one of the most dependable, eclectic, and widely respected character actors in Hollywood. Some of Shawn's many credits include the part of Mr. Hall in the Alicia Silverstone classic Clueless, a character he reprised on the short-lived Rachel Blanchard-led TV series. Over the years, he's also had memorable turns in The Haunted Mansion, Gossip Girl and Mozart in the Jungle.

If you haven't seen Shawn since The Princess Bride, you've almost definitely heard him. The actor lent his voice to awkward dinosaur Rex in the Toy Story series and also provided vocals for A Goofy Movie, The Incredibles and Chicken Little.

Shawn is also an accomplished writer, penning the screenplay for cult hit (and subject of a Community parody episode) My Dinner with Andre, as well as plays like The Fever, The Designated Mourner and Evening at the Talk House. He also released a collection of essays, aptly titled Essays, in 2009. Although his work as a writer hasn't made many bestsellers' lists, he has said that he identifies more with writing than acting, and that he's prouder of his work as a writer than as an actor.

"Being an actor is a strange thing that came up in my life, and I've had great good luck with it, and should just be gratified by that," he told the Guardian in 2015. "But since you're asking such a brutally frank question, let's put it this way: I take myself much more seriously as a writer, but I understand why people might not like my writing."

Fred Savage is well-known for his time as a child actor, which began with his role as the sick kid whose grandfather reads him The Princess Bride in the classic film. Shortly thereafter, he landed his most famous role as Kevin Arnold on The Wonder Years, earning multiple Golden Globe and Emmy nominations during the hit dramedy's run.

After graduating from Stanford University in 1999, Savage moved behind the camera, picking up directing credits on shows like Boy Meets World, Even Stevens, Zoey 101, Phil of the Future, Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide, and Hannah Montana before moving into more adult-oriented fare such as It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Party Down, Happy Endings, Modern Family and 2 Broke Girls.

More recently, Savage moved back into acting to appear on FOX's The Grinder opposite fellow former child actor Rob Lowe. The show did well with critics, but was canceled after one season. Savage's next series, the Netflix production Friends from College, lasted two seasons. On the big screen, he was seen most recently opposite Deadpool in an edited rerelease of Deadpool 2, playing himself in framing scenes lampooning his work in The Princess Bride.

Perennial Oscar host Billy Crystal was almost unrecognizable in his Princess Bride role as Miracle Max, the potions master tasked with bringing Westley back to life. The role was one of Crystal's early famous parts, which also included a stint on Saturday Night Live and the buddy-cop comedy Running Scared. The late '80s and early '90s boasted a string of cinematic hits for Crystal, including When Harry Met Sally... and City Slickers. He's also done pretty well for himself with voice work, playing Mike Wazowski in Monsters Inc. and its prequel, Monsters University, a part which made him beloved with children everywhere (and especially Boo).

Crystal, a longtime baseball fan, used to be a part-owner of MLB team the Arizona Diamondbacks and was with the club during their winning 2001 World Series run. He spent one day playing in the MLB in 2008, going to bat for the New York Yankees against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Although he did hit one foul, he struck out after six pitches.

Carol Kane played Miracle Max's wife Valerie, showing off the comedic skills that have served her well throughout a distinguished career. Before appearing in The Princess Bride, Kane was already an Oscar nominee for Hester Street and a Golden Globe nominee and Emmy winner for the Taxi TV series. She also had a memorable part in Woody Allen's Annie Hall.

For most of the 2000s, Kane stuck mostly with guest-starring parts and small roles in films, appearing in Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen, The Pacifier, Two and a Half Men, Monk, Ugly Betty and more. While she was keeping her appearances minimal onscreen, Kane remained prolific, starring as headmistress Madame Morrible in Wicked on Broadway and in tours of the show from 2005 to 2014. She also appeared in the 2012 Broadway revival of Harvey and in the West End revival of The Children's Hour alongside Keira Knightley, Elisabeth Moss and Ellen Burstyn.

More recently, Kane has been seen in Netflix's Tina Fey-produced sitcom Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and has also had a recurring role on Gotham.

In the mid-1980s, when the WWF was at its most popular, visible, and culturally dominant, André the Giant towered over all the wrestlers — quite literally. The 7'4", 520-pound French athlete struck an imposing and memorable presence in the ring, dressed in his trademark black singlet and sporting long sideburns. André was part of the WWF's most memorable moments of the era, like ending Half Hogan's four-year reign as WWF champion in 1988 and squaring off against Hogan at WrestleMania III. André the Giant was such a popular wrestler and unique physical specimen that a side career in Hollywood was inevitable. In addition to bit roles as toughs and villains on shows like The Six Million Dollar Man, The Fall Guy, and The Greatest American Hero, André's biggest role was that of Fezzik, a gentle giant (unless provoked) in The Princess Bride.

The man born Andre Roussimoff kept wrestling through December 1992. In January 1993, shortly after attending his own father's funeral, André the Giant suffered a fatal heart attack in Paris. He was 46.

The Princess Bride is a fairytale of a storybook adventure, and it's presented as such with the film's framing device of an exceedingly kind and charming grandpa reading the S. Morgenstern volume (but only "the good parts") to his grandson. Like the grandson, portrayed by Fred Savage, Peter Falk is primarily known for his television work — he was instantly recognizable to the millions who saw the film on its initial release as TV's Columbo. One of the most famous roles in TV history, and one of the few that are this closely associated with a particular actor, Falk portrayed a seemingly scatterbrained and disorganized police detective who always solved the case, disarming the chief suspects by fooling them into thinking he was incompetent, his rumpled trench coat and dazed appearance belying a shrewd and brilliant mind. Columbo aired on NBC and ABC off and on from 1968 to 2003, and Falk won four Emmy Awards for his work.

Falk also had plenty of time to pursue movies, appearing in classic comedies like It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, The In-Laws, The Great Muppet Caper, and The Player. After appearing in the 2009 indie movie American Cowslip, Falk, diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, retired. He died in 2011 at the age of 83.

The officiant of the ill-fated and untoward wedding between Prince Humperdinck and Buttercup is a high-ranking church official in Florin, officially listed in The Princess Bride credits as "The Impressive Clergyman." That might be because it's one of the great one-scene performances in film history. The character isn't in the film long, but one of his lines is arguably the movie's most quoted: "Mawwage," he begins his speech about the sacred bond between husband and wife, affecting an Elmer Fudd-esque speech impediment. Or perhaps he's just impressive because he's portrayed by one of the most iconic British comedians of the 20th century. Peter Cook turns in a great cameo, capping a career of many memorable comedic turns.

Alongside Dudley Moore in a troupe called Beyond the Fringe, he helped launch a fruitful period of satirical and anarchic comedy in '60s England. Cook starred in stage and televised sketch comedy shows along with films like Bedazzled and also made several top-selling comedy records. After a smattering of additional roles following his appearance in The Princess Bride, Cook died in January 1995 at age 57.

The character known by the now outdated and somewhat improper term "The Albino" isn't in The Princess Bride for all that long, but managed to make a lasting impression. In serving the wicked Count Rugen, The Albino guards the Pit of Despair, where he restores Westley's health so that he might be tortured. To save Westley, Inigo and Fezzik overpower the large, fearsome, and wordless Albino, with a blow to the head from the mighty Fezzik doing the trick.

And like the guy who played the Impressive Clergyman, the guy who played the Albino is a well-known British entertainer. Mel Smith was part of the cast of the 1979-1982 satirical sketch series Not the Nine O'Clock News, among the many projects he appeared in with comedy partner Griff Rhys Jones. In 1985, he made a memorable cameo as a slovenly hotel clerk in National Lampoon's European Vacation. Among many other character parts, Smith co-starred in the acclaimed miniseries Dancing on the Edge in 2013, the same year he passed away from a heart attack at age 60.

Yellin is the Chief Enforcer of Florin, who heads up the kingdom's espionage network and serves Prince Humperdinck loyally, up to and including acting on a tip that the rival nation of Guilder plans to assassinate Buttercup before her forced wedding to that very prince. It's not true, but he's duped into executing the plan, thereby locking the castle gates and putting guards in place, which keeps Westley, Inigo, and Fezzik out of the way (for a while). Yellin is an underling, a patsy, a Smithers, ably played by English character actor Malcolm Storry.

Well before The Princess Bride, Storry was one of the most prolific stars of the British stage, appearing in productions on both the West End (London's Broadway) and with the prestigious Royal Shakespeare Company. He's also a veteran of English TV, showing up for an episode or two in dozens of dramas, notably popular-in-America exports like Midsomer Murders and Doc Martin. Storry has done a little film work, too, notably playing General Ironside opposite Gary Oldman's Oscar-winning portrayal of Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour.