Star Wars icon Mark Hamill is easily one of the most delightful celebrity presences on social media these days. Over the years, he’s regaled fans with BTS throwback videos featuring stars like Carrie Fisher and even weighed in on long-standing rumors on topics like reshoots. It’s always a treat when the fan-favorite actor shares something or even weighs in on a historic tidbit that hits the web. The latter occurred just this week when Hamill’s original audition with Harrison Ford went viral. After seeing the clip, the Luke Skywalker actor felt compelled to share some behind-the-scenes stories.
The video initially made the rounds across the Internet in 2019 but has since cropped up yet again. The footage shows the two beloved stars (who were essentially unknown actors at that point) performing a key scene from Star Wars. The fresh-faced actors seemed to be giving it all during the audition, and you can see their efforts for yourself in the Twitter post down below:
What a gem here from @larwoolf. Can you share any color on this, @HamillHimself! 💯#StarWars (cc: @frankpallotta)pic.twitter.com/O2lcUKTrBHJuly 27, 2019
They did an admirable job, but it actually becomes even more impressive when you consider what Mark Hamill said when he retweeted the post. The 71-year-old star revealed that he and his would-be co-star had yet to lay their eyes on the full script when they did that. So they were working on an important scene without even having the full context. Hamill also offered some insight into an early chat he had with franchise creator George Lucas and revealed how he personally approached the material:
At this point, neither of us had read the full script, only this one scene. I was full of questions, but George said ‘Let's just try one & we'll talk about it later.’ Even though it felt like a parody of sci-fi, I decided to play it as sincerely as possible.
The actor – who’s also famous for voicing the Joker in the DC Animated Universe – cheekily mentioned in the thread that the “"I'm beginning not to like you" line didn’t make it into the script. He’d go on to share additional details while answering fans who commented on his post. While responding to one person, he clarified that this particular audition took place very early in the process. The Last Jedi star also denied that he’d ever read with Kurt Russell, as he believed the Escape from New York had also tried out for the role of Luke.
Little nuggets like those are nothing short of intriguing and provide invaluable context for major moments within the history of cinema. Mark Hamill has been a treasure trove when it comes to Star Wars fun facts. In 2021, he detailed how he handled the big Darth Vader reveal scene in Empire and, later that year, he also revealed the cameos he’s performed in Disney-era SW fare. But his most delightful shares have to be the throwbacks involving Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford. The trio were pure magic on screen together, but their off-screen antics were even sweeter.
I can’t see Mark Hamill slowing down when it comes to Star Wars trivia anytime soon. Selfishly, I’d love to see him keep it going for as long as possible, given that I’m a fan of the massive science fiction franchise. Here’s to more fun facts from Hamill and, if he ever decides to stop sharing, at least we’ll have his A+ jokes.
You can check out the witty performer’s work – and that of his co-stars – by streaming all of the Star Wars movies using a Disney+ subscription.
