Mark Interviews 2000+
Ever wonder what happened to Luke Skywalker?
Is the Force still with Mark Hamill?
What's with the leotards, multicolor fright wig and cape?
It's a sight you can see currently in movie theaters in Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back, and it's one that may shock STAR WARS cultists.
It's the first time Hamill has been in costume, brandishing a lightsaber, since 1983's Return of the Jedi, but it's hardly the same. This is an irreverent comedy. We can't even print his character's name. It also marks the only time Hamill and Carrie Fisher have appeared together in a non-STAR WARS flick. She plays a Bible-pushing nun.
What would George say? (George Lucas, that is.)
Hamill, 49, laughs heartily at the irreverence of it all.
"Maybe it's our puritanical roots that make us squeamish about humor,'' he said. "I've come to accept Luke Skywalker as a part of my life, comfortably, and I love the fans, but I don't want to take anything too seriously. I think doing this little cameo was a lark.''
Director Kevin Smith, who plays Silent Bob, and directed what he calls The Jersey Chronicles (Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy and Dogma), is a STAR WARS fanatic. He was overjoyed to get Hamill and Fisher into the new comedy.
"Luke belongs to everyone,'' Hamill said. "I don't even like flying, but when I'm on airplanes, the pilot often invites me up to the cockpit for landing. They think I'm an aviation expert. I'm sure the pilot goes home and says, 'Guess who I had in the cockpit today?'"
Hamill was sitting at L'Hermitage Hotel in Beverly Hills after driving in from his Malibu home. His main work today is voiceovers for cartoon characters, but he isn't hurting for money.
Wing Commander, a CD-ROM he developed, grossed more than $100 million, and his percentage from STAR WARS poured in anew when the trilogy had a phenomenal re-release in 1997. The "gift'' didn't sound like much in 1977 when director Lucas gave the three leads (Hamill, Fisher and Harrison Ford) 0.1 percent of profits as a bonus because the film went over schedule in filming. It turned out to be worth millions. Hamill hasn't seen the original STAR WARS since its 1977 release, when he got in line with the fans and went unnoticed.
"I wanted to see it with them, not with professionals,'' he recalled. "To see it now would be like looking at an old high school yearbook.''
His subsequent movie career (Corvette Summer in 1978 and the World War II drama The Big Red One in 1980) was unsuccessful, but he isn't moaning.
"I get the sad stories because Harrison (Ford) did so well, but, actually, I've been working constantly. I've done voiceovers for over 400 cartoons, and I love doing that. I did Amadeus and The Elephant Man on Broadway -- choosing to go to theater rather than movies.''
Hamill has come a long way since attending first grade in Williamsburg. His father was a captain in the Navy, and Mark and his six siblings moved frequently.
"I grew up in California, Virginia, New York and Japan,'' he said.
He and his wife, Marilou, have two sons, Griffin, 17, and Nathan, 11, and one daughter, Chelsea Elizabeth, 12.
Disaster hit when Hamill was involved in a near-fatal car crash in 1980, between the filming of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. His disfigured face remained altered even after reconstructive surgery.
After his Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back cameo, Hamill hopes to direct The Black Pearl, a film version of a five-part comic book series he created. His ambitions lean toward directing.
"I get offers to act for television, but I always tell them I'll do one show as an actor if they'll let me direct another. They usually don't call back.''
He, like the rest of the world, is waiting for the release of Episode II next May. The film chronicles the romance of Luke and Leia's parents.
"I don't know anything about how it will play,'' Hamill said. "I don't think anyone (does).''Hampton Road, August 31, 2001