Skywalker. Luke Skywalker. Oh, how great a Star Wars film would be if a James Bond spy existed in the galactic move franchise. Maybe even better would be a Bond film with some Jedi mind tricks.
Although these franchises haven’t combined forces, they have certainly shared the services of several actors. The following is a list of those actors written from a Star Wars perspective or, more accurately, listed with their Star Wars character name followed by the actor’s name and a brief description thereafter.
Boba Fett – Jeremy Bulloch
Bulloch is unique because he went back and forth between Bond and Star Wars films. In 1977, he appeared as a crewman on the HMS Ranger in The Spy Who Loved Me, only to put on the Boba Fett armor in The Empire Strikes Back in 1980, but before reprising Fett in Return of the Jedi, he played Smithers in the Bond film For Your Eyes Only.
After kissing Fett goodbye and diving into the Sarlacc pit, Bulloch played Smithers again in Octopussy in 1983.
Biggs – Garrick Hagon
Hagon appeared on the big screen as a crewman on the USS Wayne in The Spy Who Loved Me in 1977, the same year he appeared as Biggs in the original Star Wars.
Biggs is a childhood friend of Luke Skywalker’s who also fights alongside him in the Battle of Yavin. He doesn’t survive the Death Star raid, but his deleted scene from early in the film might be the most popular such scene in the franchise.
Lor San Tekka – Max von Sydow
The legendary Max von Sydow is the biggest name to appear in both franchises — if, that is, we don’t do what so many others do, which is kick Never Say Never Again off the Bond list simply because it wasn’t an Eon film. Never Say Never Again starred Sean Connery as Bond for the last time in a 1983 return. Max von Sydow played Bond’s arch rival, Blofeld, in the film and then decades later appeared in The Force Awakens.
General Veers – Julian Glover
In the 1981 Bond film For Your Eyes Only, Julian Glover played Kristatos a year after he appeared in Empire Strikes Back as General Veers, leading the attack on the rebels on the ice planet Hoth, destroying the power generators that took out the shield and allowed Darth Vader to land and head for Echo Base.
Lobot – John Hollis
Lando Calrissian’s right-hand man in Cloud City is Lobot and, like Max von Sydow, actor John Hollis also appeared — albeit briefly in the film’s opening — as Bond’s nemesis Blofeld in For Your Eyes Only. Coincidentally, both John Hollis and Max von Sydow play Blofeld — in different Bond films — without being credited as that villain, because of a controversy over the licensing rights to the character’s name.
Personally, Billy Dee Williams gets my vote for the actor who should’ve been James Bond, especially with John Hollis as Blofeld, but I’ll settle for Billy Dee as the Bond of Star Wars.
General Madine – Dermot Crowley
In 1983, Dermot Crowley was in both Return of the Jedi and Octopussy. He plays Kamp in the Bond film, and General Crix Madine in Jedi.
Madine briefs the rebels just before the Battle of Endor, along with Mon Mothma and Admiral Ackbar. Crowley had to wear a fake beard in the film, because Kenner Products already began making his toy figure and, well, it was bearded. Crowley was informed the first day on set of this toyish development, but Crowley was completely clean shaven.
The Rancor keeper – Paul Brooke
Malakili was the Rancor’s keeper unspoken name in Return of the Jedi, most remembered for humorously crying anfter the Rancor’s death. Thanks a lot, Luke!
Brooke also appears in For Your Eyes Only, along with a few aforementioned Empire Strikes Back actors.
General Rieekan – Bruce Boa
Boa played a General in both franchises, first as a Rebel General in Empire, then as the U.S. General in Octopussy. Star Wars fans will remember him in Echo Base on the ice planet Hoth. He’s the General whom Han Solo tells he must leave, which triggers a lovely conversation between Han and Leia just as the imperials are attacking.
Commander Praji – George Roubicek
Roubicek played an astronaut in You Only Live Twice in 1967, and also played the Imperial Officer in Star Wars who tells Darth Vader early in the film, after boarding the rebel ship the Tantive IV, that the stolen battle station plans are not aboard the ship, but that an escape pod was jettisoned during the attack.
General Motti – Richard LeParmentier
In 1983, LaParmentier appeared in Octopussy, but is better-known for his Star Wars role as the arrogant General Motti, who gets force-choked by Darth Vader because of said arrogance.
Funny enough, Vader was kind to him because he let him go.
InCom Engineer – Shane Rimmer
Rimmer is the radar operator in Hawaii in You Only Live Twice in 1967, Tom in Diamonds Are Forever in 1971, and Commander Carter in The Spy Who Loved Me in 1977.
He plays an engineer for the rebels on Yavin in the original Star Wars.
Director – Irvin Kershner
No Star Wars-Bond list is complete without mentioning Irvin Kershner. His next film after directing The Empire Strikes Back was the Bond film Never Say Never Again starring Sean Connery.
It would’ve been great to see Bond frozen in carbonite or Vader telling him he’s his father but we shall never get such a Jedi-like Bond film. Then again, never say never.