How many animals can claim the status of international movie star? Keiko, the male orca whose name means “lucky one” in Japanese, was best known for starring in the 1993 hit film Free Willy. He was first captured in 1979 near the coast of Iceland, and eventually sold to a Mexican amusement park. After landing the lead role in Free Willy, Keiko received attention because, as it turned out, his life wasn’t so lucky after all. For starters, he was severely underweight and suffered from skin lesions. With donations pouring in from children around the country, along with large sums from Warner Brothers, the Humane Society and cellphone billionaire Craig McCaw, an aquarium in Oregon was able to build a $7 million rehab tank for Keiko. He regained his strength and was eventually released back into the sea, but died of pneumonia in 2003. “By all accounts, Keiko was an exceptionally charming animal,” Joshua Fisher, who produced the documentary Freeing Willy, told the Huffington Post. “Everyone I spoke to who got close to Keiko told me they felt a personal connection to him. They all sort of fell under his spell.”