The bad guy was great; who'd have guessed the actor was terminally ill

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096933/trivia
Yûsaku Matsuda, who plays the villain, Sato, knew he had bladder cancer, and that his condition would be aggravated by acting in the movie. He elected to do so anyway, unbeknownst to director Ridley Scott, reportedly saying, "This way, I will live forever." He died on 9 November 1989, less than seven weeks after the film's American premiere.