A new hope for Peter Mayhew

Star Wars veteran Peter Mayhew, who has been wheelchair bound for two years is recovering from double-knee replacement surgery which doctors hope will let him walk again.

The British born actor, who towers above his contemporaries at 7ft 3, became a US citizen in 2005 and is best known for playing Chewbacca in four Star Wars episodes and hopes to gain a new lease of life from the surgery.

Mayhew, 69, will also be the subject of a documentary called Standing in the Stars - The Peter Mayhew Story, which will highlight his medical conditions including gigantism, which is responsible for his tall stature.

Chewbacca famously snagged the last line in 1977's Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, and was more recently seen portrayed by Mayhew in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith in 2005. It is unknown whether he, or Mayhew will return for Episode VII.