On the day of the 41st anniversary of A New Hope, we head back to 13th June 1977 and an interview that Mark Hamill conducted with The Village Voice, just weeks after the release of the original film.
It’s a fascinating read as all of the elements we know and love from future Hamill interviews are here, including his patented Harrison Ford impression and the classic ‘faster, more intense’.
“I remember being back in Africa, filming the first line I say in the movie. I’d said to myself, remember, you have to go way up in this scene so that in the middle of the movie you can start to make your transition, from a wormy guy down to someone halfway human. So, out comes this singsong falsetto: “But I was going into Talshi station to pick up some power converters!” Aaargh! It made me ill! I swear, I thought I was gonna throw up the first time I saw it. But I’ve seen it four times now, and each time I like myself better. I like myself for about 30 per cent of it. I think I fit in. I do.
“Harrison is per-fect! Harrison, of all the humans, comes closest to stealing it. When I heard him say, ‘Keed — I been from one sida this galaxy to the other —’ I said, oh jeez! this guy…he has every good line. It killed me! Him and Threepio. I’d say, can’t I have one joke, George? Just one?”
Mark does a fine, slow, Harrison Ford drawl as he describes their first meeting in Tunisia. “He says, ‘Sooo, kiiid, wadya…think a this…******’ movie we’re in…’ I’m all, ‘well, gol-lee! hey!’ He goes, ‘Just…calm down, keed…’ The big brother! Perfect! Does George Lucas cast exactly right, or what? He gets so close to what he wants, he doesn’t need to get into any big editorial conferences. His biggest direction to me was, ‘Faster. More intensity’.”
