Renato Casaro has died aged 89 in his native Treviso, Italy. Renato was the designer of movie posters for Hollywood hits such as Rambo, The Never-Ending Story, and James Bond's Octopussy. He died on Monday in a hospital after being admitted with bronchopneumonia days earlier, the Italian news service RAI reported. During his illustrious career, the talented designer also helped launch Arnold Schwarzenegger's acting career by creating his poster for Dino De Laurentiis-produced Conan the Barbarian (1982). Renato has also created posts for Total Recall, Terminator 2: Judgement Day, The Running Man and True Lies amid others. He also made a lot of posters for spaghetti Westerns during his life, such as Clint Eastwood's Fistful of Dollars in 1964.
The artist previously opened up about painting certain stars during a candid interview with The Guardian, where he said: "Schwarzenegger was the perfect man to paint. He had a tough expression. His face was like a sculpture. It was a real pleasure for me — I have always had a weakness for heroes.”
Renato was fascinated with billboards when he was a child and managed to land a job as an illustrator for the film ad agency Studio Favalli in Rome before opening his own studio at just 21 years old.
His work really took hold in 1965 with his poster for The Bible in the Beginning. “It was a colossal film,” Renato told CBS News. “My posters were put on billboards on Sunset Boulevard. After that, my phone never stopped ringing.”
Renato stepped away from creating posters in 1988 due to studios' opening digital formats. However, longtime admirer Quentin Tarantino brought the star back into the spotlight in recent years.
He asked Renato to create a series of posters for the 2019 film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
Quentin sent Renato a signed photo of Leonardo DiCaprio with one of the movie posters. In a message, he penned: Thanks so much for your art gracing my picture. You’ve always been my favourite.”
Fans have been pouring in tributes, with one writing: "Italian painter Renato Casaro has passed. His movie posters defined a lot of the 80s for me." A second wrote: "RIP legendary Italian movie poster artist Renato Casaro 1935 - 2025."
Another said: "Painter Renato Casaro has passed away, but his incredible work will never be forgotten." A fourth said: "Once called the Michelangelo of movie posters, his brush defined cinema’s golden imagery. From both 1983 #JamesBond films to countless classics, his legacy lives on in his amazing art."
