Mark Hamill has offered a glimpse into his friendship with Carrie Fisher and the transformative advice she gave after he began to downplay his fame while performing on Broadway.
In an interview on NPR's "Fresh Air," published June 2, the actor recalled how Fisher encouraged him to embrace his "Star Wars" legacy after he left out the credit on a Broadway playbill.
"[Carrie Fisher] came to see a Broadway show of mine," Hamill said. "And in the playbill, in my bio, I listed all my theater credits and at the end it said, 'He's also known for a series of popular space movies.' And she goes, 'What's the deal? How come you don't mention 'Star Wars'?' And I said, 'Well, I want to show that I have a resume that includes extensive theater credits.' And she said, 'Hey, get over yourself. You're Luke Skywalker. I'm Princess Leia. Embrace it.'"
He continued, "And I kind of saw what she meant, you know, because you say to yourself, 'What territory do I occupy that no one else does?' So she was someone that sort of put it in perspective for me."
Together with Harrison Ford as Han Solo, Fisher, and Hamill played central roles in the original "Star Wars" trilogy. After the series wrapped in 1983, it laid the foundation for what would become one of the most iconic and profitable franchises in cinematic history. Hamill reprised his role as Luke Skywalker in recent installments, but in an interview with ComicBook said he had no further plans to return.
"I am so grateful to George [Lucas] for letting me be a part of that back in the day, the humble days when George called Star Wars 'the most expensive low-budget movie ever made,'" Hamill said. "We never expected it to become a permanent franchise and a part of pop culture like that. But my deal is, I had my time. I'm appreciative of that, but I really think they should focus on the future and all the new characters."
Hamill then joked that he had another reason not to return.
"And by the way, when I disappeared in [The Last Jedi], I left my robes behind. And there's no way I'm gonna appear as a naked Force ghost," he said.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.