Star Wars Celebration: Mark Hamill Shares How ‘Star Wars’ Trailer Was ‘Heckled’
The nostalgia is strong in this one.
Star Wars may be the hit franchise that it is now, but apparently, no one appreciated the stories from galaxies far, far away in its earlier days. Actor Mark Hamill shared how he and his late co-star, Carrie Fisher, were witnesses to how the early Star Wars trailer was heckled in theaters.
He shared this story at Star Wars Celebration, an gathering of fans that aims to celebrate everything about the beloved franchise. This year’s Celebration was held in Orlando, Florida.
The veteran actor started by recalling how he and Fisher were passing by a movie theater, and the actress who played Princess Leia mentioned that the Star Wars trailer was playing there. Neither had seen it, but both were interested enough that they thought of talking the manager into letting them in just to see the trailer.
Hamill thought of making Fisher ask the people working on the theater first, but she convinced him of doing it as he is probably more recognizable, because he has been on TV “for seven years.” And so Hamill talked to the lady who worked the box office, convincing her that both of them were actors that appear in the trailer. The lady “reluctantly” got her manager, who allowed the two to go in and watch just the trailer.
So the two went in, and Hamill recalled that the trailer was probably made too early in the project’s development that it didn’t even have a score.
“They didn’t have very many special effects finished at all. A couple of shots of TIE Fighters, I think,” the actor shared. Nevertheless, the trailer still made a significant impression on him because he had never seen any of the footage before.
Unfortunately, the trailer did not make that much of an impression to the audience.
Mark Hamill shared how there was a bit at the end of the Star Wars trailer that said “A billion light years in the making. And it’s coming to your galaxy this summer,” complete with a huge explosion typical of trailers. After that, someone yelled out the perfect retort: “Yeah, and it’s coming to the late show about two weeks after that.” Hamill admitted that both he and Fisher thought it was funny at first, but then went through an “uh-oh” moment after realizing the implications.
Nevertheless, it was another priceless anecdote fitting of any Star Wars celebration.
Mark Hamill is the actor who played the lead role in the original Star Wars films: Luke Skywalker. The franchise is being revived featuring a new generation of characters, with events set decades after the original, and Hamill admits that he liked playing Luke again, back on the big screen. One of his most favorite moments were meeting children who do not realize that Star Wars was created many, many years ago; some of them could not believe how he looks like right now.
He also shared a valuable, albeit risky, piece of acting advice he got from co-actor Harrison Ford, who played Han Solo in the movies. He said that when director and creator George Lucas did not allow him to tweak his lines a little, he asked the accomplished actor how to approach it.
Ford answered by saying he should just do it, because Lucas might not notice it anyway. Besides, it might not look good on paper, but who knows, the director might like it on the actual performance.
Star Wars remains to be a franchise that is beloved by millions of fans around the world, and if the Star Wars Celebration is any indication, that is not going to change anytime soon.
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[Featured Image by Gustavo Caballero/Getty Images]
