Forgot password
Enter the email address you used when you joined and we'll send you instructions to reset your password.
If you used Apple or Google to create your account, this process will create a password for your existing account.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Reset password instructions sent. If you have an account with us, you will receive an email within a few minutes.
Something went wrong. Try again or contact support if the problem persists.
luke skywalker a new hope
via Lucasfilm

Mark Hamill shares insight on his earliest thoughts towards ‘Star Wars’

Hamill nailed what 'Star Wars' was about way back in 1975

In 1977, George Lucas caught lightning in a bottle with Star Wars. The combination of space fantasy, grubby lived-in sci-fi elements, John Williams’ score, a great cast, and cutting-edge special effects made A New Hope one of the biggest movies of all-time. Almost a half-century later and it’s still one of the biggest things in entertainment, but now, Luke Skywalker himself has shed some light on his very earliest thoughts on a galaxy far, far away.

Recommended Videos

It came after a black-and-white video of Harrison Ford’s 1975 audition for Han Solo appeared on Twitter. He reads his lines opposite the already-cast Mark Hamill, with the dialogue a very early draft that doesn’t appear in the finished film. Even at this very early stage Ford has nailed Han Solo’s character, though Hamill is playing Luke a little more downbeat than in the finished movie.

Asked for his comments, Hamill hinted that he recognized that the dialogue could come across as campy, so he wanted to play the scene as sincerely as he could:

Playing these roles straight without winking to the camera or trying to be above the material was clearly the right choice, and while the cast and crew famously had misgivings about Star Wars, Lucas’ unique cocktail resulted in the all-conquering blockbuster that endures so many years later.

Early material like this also makes us crave a fully-featured re-release of the theatrical cuts of the original trilogy. Sure, some of the effects are a little wonky without Lucas’ 1990s CGI glow-up, but the untouched 1977 version of Star Wars is a piece of pop culture history, and we want to see it in the best condition possible.

Star Wars: A New Hope is available to stream on Disney Plus.


We Got This Covered is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more about our Affiliate Policy
Author
Image of David James
David James
I'm a writer/editor who's been at the site since 2015. Love writing about video games and will crawl over broken glass to write about anything related to Hideo Kojima. But am happy to write about anything and everything, so long as it's interesting!