Mark Interviews 2000+
Mark Hamill
Mark Hamill gained worldwide fame playing Luke Skywalker alongside Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford and Sir Alec
Guinness in STAR WARS, The Empire Strikes Back and
Return of the Jedi. Then he suffered a car crash and returned to shun Hollywood, opting for
theatre and voiceover parts and work in computer games. Guest appearances include The Simpsons.
May The Force Be With You.
Thanks. Not many people actually say that to me, which I know sounds weird. I try not to be too flippant in
response. I'm taken aback at how spiritually people have taken the message. It must fulfill a need in people. One
thing I like about it is that it is as deep or as trivial as you want to make it.
In the UK, there was a campaign at our last census to have Jedi included under religions.
How many did they get?
They didn't. It wasn't included as the census-takers thought it was a joke.
Isn't that something? I heard something similar happened in Australia. I understand the census's problem. How do
you know if people are being facetious or not?
Why are there so many STAR WARS geeks?
The original films were a catharsis in the movie world. The typical hero at the time was a cynical Vietnam war
veteran. Everything was set in the real world with anti-heroes. STAR WARS tapped an
unfulfilled desire on the part of the audience. I recall first reading the script and I knew if they could get 20 per cent
of it on screen, it would be a huge smash. There was no way it was not going to be a success. Plus, the films had a
sense of humour. How much sci-fi had a sense of humour - ever? STAR WARS was like a
fairytale but in space. There was a princess, wizard, pirate and a farm boy hanging out.
You were the biggest movie star in the world at the time. What happened?
I never saw it like that. I thought I was playing one character in one of the most popular movies of all time. My
quest was 'Who am I?' and 'What do I do next?' I always wanted to be flexible enough to be a character actor. There
were drawbacks and there were advantages, but doing what I wanted allowed me to work so often in the theatre
and get to where I am now: working on cartoons and video games and things that appeal to young people. The last
18 months has been one of the most creative times of my life. I have been co-creator, performer and director of
an animated series, I have just finished a Broadway play and I am co-creator, performer and director on
Comic Book: The Movie.
What's that?
It's a mock doumentary I've produced, co-created, directed and star in. It answers some personal questions for me
such as: 'Why do I still love a genre I should have given up on when I was 12?' I play a Wisconsin school
teacher who is hired to be a consultant on a movie about my favourite comic book character. We filmed like
guerilla filmmaking at the San Diego Comic Book Convention.
Fine - but most people would have expected you to go the same way as Harrison Ford.
I wanted to explore my strengths and weaknesses. Harrison is incredibly talented and he really has a clear-cut
persona and connection with the audience. But whatever you trade-in becoming an icon within your own persona, you
gain in being able to appear as everything from a comic book character to a gay dance instructor. Then you make
people go: 'Oh, I didn't expect him to be in that.' Harrison has made movies that have made a fortune and he still
gets people saying: 'This one only made $122million.' I do what I want and don't have to be in the spotlight.
Is there an anecdote about filming that has not been told?
My elder son is the real STAR WARS fan and official archivist. I remember crawling up into
Jabba the Hutt and trying to see what it would be like to be a puppeteer between takes. He was made of papier mâché
inside and when I was coming out to film the next scene, I remember stopping to read a review of a David Bowie
concert in Paris that was on one of the pieces of paper. Working in North Africa, on an Alec Guinness movie, being
inside a giant rubber lizard and reading a David Bowie review from papier mâché. It does not get more surreal than
that.
How could you concentrate with Carrie Fisher in that bikini?
I was so surprised - it was a provocative outfit for a children's movie. We were used to any relationship between
woman and man being a kiss on the cheek and then she turned up in that. Bear in mind I had been taken aside and
knew what the plot involved for our relationship. The fact that all these years later it appeared on an episode of
Friends shows how much it infiltrated pop culture. I'm constantly surprised at
how many people tell me they joined the business because of STAR WARS. For me it was
watching King Kong on TV. I knew someone went to work everyday and made
gorillas and dinosaurs move for movies. I wanted that job.
Admit it, the new ones aren't a patch on the old, though?
The new STAR WARS movies are amazing. It is unbelievable how far they have come. They are like an art book
come to life and are truly epic in a way ours never could be. I'm sure George Lucas could go on making them for
as long as he was interested.