Roy Scheider died before Iron Cross filming ended - but a make-up expert and a latex mask saved the show

When film star Roy Scheider died last year, a crucial scene in the action film he was making had not yet been completed. The film-makers' unique answer was to build a prosthetic latex mask based on Scheider's distinctive features and to use it, along with computer-generated imagery, to bring the lead actor back to life for one last performance.

Scheider, who was renowned for his portrayal of tough cops, made his name in the 1970s with central roles in Jaws and The French Connection. The 75-year-old star's death, which was marked last night at a big Hollywood memorial gathering, had left the English director of the unfinished revenge thriller, Iron Cross, facing a big problem. But Joshua Newton hopes his film has survived disaster thanks to his collaboration with Louis Lazzara,...