It may be hard to believe, but there have been quite a few actors who've turned down
the chance to appear in Star Wars.
It's only the biggest movie franchise in human history, so what's the big deal?
Here are a few actors who, for whatever reason, refused to appear in Star Wars at one time
or another.
Benicio del Toro
Before Ray Park portrayed the virtually mute Darth Maul in The Phantom Menace, Benicio
del Toro was expected to appear as the horn-headed bad guy.
He reportedly walked away after most of his lines were cut from the script, whittling
the part down to a few spoken words, doing double-ended light-saber ballet, and getting
unceremoniously cut in half and thrown into the space garbage.
Perhaps his decision was wise: Maul has yet to return to the big screen, and Del Toro
got a second chance at the franchise by way of 2017's Star Wars: The Last Jedi, alongside
Mark Hamill and Daisy Ridley, in which he plays an "intergalactic villain."
Hopefully one with some actual dialogue.
Burt Reynolds
'70s superstar and professional mustache Burt Reynolds didn't suffer a shortage of work
due to his decision to skip out on 1977's Star Wars.
In fact, one of his most memorable appearances, in Smokey and the Bandit, dropped just days
after the first Star Wars hit theaters.
Reynolds was originally offered the role of space-smuggler Han Solo, which of course ultimately
went to Harrison Ford.
He explained on Good Morning America that he really didn't have a good reason.
"Yeah."
"You were busy."
"I was busy.
But, no, I wasn't so busy I couldn't have done it."
At the time, Reynolds was only choosing films by where they were being shot and whatever
girls he might get to kiss during filming.
Which, as far as choosing job opportunities goes, isn't the worst short-term strategy.
But then again, Harrison Ford didn't have to appear in Delgo.
Point, Ford.
Al Pacino
Another big-timer who declined the chance to play space cowboy was Al Pacino, who'd
already earned four Oscar nominations by the time 1977 rolled around.
In 2014, he explained his decision to decline the opportunity to MTV News.
"So they offered me this movie.
And I remember not understanding it when I read it."
"Right"
"And ah..
So another missed opportunity."
He also said that it was really a matter of choosing between a wealth of opportunities,
since he was being offered every possible role after starring in The Godfather.
Still, there's no explaining why he turned down Star Wars, and still… did this.
"It's not Al anymore.
It's Dunk!"
"Dunkaccio?"
"Don't mind if I do!"
"What's my name?
"Dunkaccino!"
Kurt Russell
Famously, Kurt Russell also had a shot at journeying out to a galaxy far, far away as
Han Solo before Harrison Ford landed the role.
He even filmed an audition.
"You can't find Organa Major?"
"Oh I found it… it's… it's just not there."
Instead, he walked away after securing a part in his TV series The Quest, which lasted just
a season.
In 2015, he told Vanity Fair that he doesn't regret the decision, saying,
"As an actor you can't dwell on those things or you'll go crazy.
Things happen for a reason and I'm happy how things turned out in my career.
My life and career may have been different, maybe for better or for worse, if I did Star
Wars, but you can't focus on it.
You move on."
Hey, there's always a sequel to circle back to like Benicio Del Toro did, right?
Speaking of which…
Christopher Lee
Long before he became the unfortunately-named Count Dooku in Attack of the Clones, Christopher
Lee was offered the role of Grand Moff Tarkin in A New Hope.
The part ultimately went to Peter Cushing: his frequent co-star, fellow Hammer Horror
legend, and close friend.
Lee later said that he joined the prequel trilogy because of his admiration for the
imagination that went into the movies, telling TheForce.net,
"I naturally was amazed at the brilliance of George Lucas.
What makes Star Wars so extraordinary is that all the stories, the special effects, the
whole concept, comes from the mind of one man: George Lucas.
The vision is quite amazing."
Sounds like someone signed on before seeing The Phantom Menace.
Gary Oldman
Another actor who walked away from the Star Wars prequel trilogy was Gary Oldman, who
was hired to voice the Jedi-hunting cyborg General Grievous in Revenge of the Sith.
Ultimately, however, Oldman departed due to union conflicts.
A rep for the actor explained,
"George Lucas and gang agreed to hire Gary Oldman if he in fact would become a union
buster, and perform work illegally overseas.
As a resident of America, and also a member of SAG, out of respect and solidarity with
the other members, he could not and would not consider violating his union's rules."
We don't want to know what George Lucas' "gang" looks like, but it probably looks a lot like
bingo night.
The role ultimately went to Matthew Wood, who'd already voiced various Star Wars characters.
Jim Henson
Master puppeteer and gentle soul of Kermit the Frog Jim Henson is owed some serious credit
for the very existence of Yoda.
The Muppet Show was being filmed across the street from Star Wars' London production location,
and Lucas saw an opportunity to work with Henson on a character.
Lucas reportedly consulted with Henson about Yoda's creation, and ended up utilizing some
of the same tech which would later come in handy for Henson's own The Dark Crystal and
Labyrinth.
Lucas even offered Henson the role of Yoda, but Henson was already pressed for time with
his own projects.
Both turned to frequent collaborator and voice of Miss Piggy, Frank Oz, with the opportunity
to star in The Empire Strikes Back instead.
Oz said that when he first saw the character, he just felt right.
Probably because they're basically twins.
Toshirô Mifune
It's no secret that Lucas was inspired by Akira Kurosawa's films, so perhaps it shouldn't
be too surprising to learn that he originally tried to recruit one of the director's biggest
alums to appear A New Hope.
Toshiro Mifune was offered not one but two roles in the Star Wars series: Obi-Wan Kenobi
and Darth Vader.
His daughter revealed to The Hollywood Reporter that he turned down the roles because,
"...he was concerned about how the film would look and that it would cheapen the image of
samurai, on which George Lucas had based a lot of the character and fighting style.
At the time, sci-fi movies still looked quite cheap as the effects were not advanced and
he had a lot of samurai pride."
As far as reasons for turning down Star Wars go, "samurai pride" sure beats Burt Reynold's
"I wanted to lock lips with Sally Field."
Leonardo DiCaprio
While Hayden Christensen would ultimately nab the role of Anakin Skywalker in Attack
of the Clones, George Lucas had originally approached future Oscar winner Leonardo DiCaprio
for the role.
"ah!"
As DiCaprio later told ShortList Magazine,
"I did have a meeting with George Lucas about that.
[I] just didn't feel ready to take that dive.
At that point."
DiCaprio has never been much of a franchise movie guy, but the prequels might've been
very different if he'd made a different decision.
"I'll try spinning that's a good trick"
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