-What do you feel about all this?
Are you a little bit nostalgic about this epoch
of "Star Wars?"
-What does it feel to be part of "Star Wars?"
For me, it's a very strange phenomenon
because unlike every audience member who's
ever been to see "Star Wars," they're seeing it like a story.
I'm seeing it as a job I did, with all sorts
of different things happening in it.
There's a camera there, there's the sound guy down here,
there's the special effects person about to blow me
up from back there, whatever.
So unlike anybody else in the world,
but like everybody who worked on the films,
I have a different experience.
And I never had that wham when the film first
came on the screen.
And in a way that's kind of disappointing.
In a way it makes it hard for me to understand
what everybody is on about.
Yeah, we made that in 1977, and 1980 or something, whatever.
I wasn't allowed by circumstances,
to have the same sense of thrill.
However, I was allowed to be in all six movies.
So that was-- kind of makes up for it.
So to come here, to Essen for "Star Wars" Celebration, you
know, we've done celebrations across America and in Japan.
And I think this is the first one
we've done in central Europe.
So this is very exciting because people
are coming from all parts of Europe,
and indeed, from around the world.
But mainly Europe.
And so this is Eurocentric and it's fine.
And 3PO of course, is very happy,
because he can understand all the languages
that people speak.
But it is a place where people come and share
that thrill that they had when they first saw the big ship
coming over the top.
-Before you played C-3PO in "Star Wars,"
you've been a stage actor and a voice actor.
Though "Star Wars" is probably what
you've been associated with from that very day.
And I don't know, maybe forever.
Is it curse or blessing?
-It's an interesting question, because it
is sort of a bit of both.
And we were talking earlier how Alec Guinness was slightly--
Sir Alec Guinness was slightly troubled by the fact
the towards the end of this life,
he became known as this cuddly old man in a long brown frock.
And we all know the sort of work he did
before that and subsequently.
And in a way, not in any sense putting myself
in the same bracket as him, other than to say there
is no way that I ever thought a career as an actor, a job
as an actor, that I wanted to do.
And I was 24 when I took myself to drama school,
because I needed to act.
I didn't need to be rich, famous, whatever.
I just needed to act.
Can't explain why.
There must be people out there who feel the same.
If you have a yearning, it's there.
You can't help it.
But there's no way I ever thought
this is going to happen.
And this has almost happened in spite of me.
Because I'm didn't want the job, George didn't want my voice.
I nearly didn't do Episode 5, because the first one was
really difficult.
And I didn't feel like going through that again.
And something has carried me-- carried me
along with him all the way.
And now, to be honest, I think I'm not dedicating,
but I'm giving a lot of my worth in life,
and I don't kind of want to work all the time.
A lot of my working life to him, whether it's
being at some wonderfully organized event by Lucasfilm
here, or whether it's being in Clone Wars,
or whether it's doing the "Star Wars," in concert,
or whether it's doing the LEGO cartoon series, which really I
love.
Or whether it's working with Disney
on "Star Tours," which we upgraded
in America a couple years ago.
He carries me along.
And I think that is my-- and so unlike Sir Alec,
and I like to think that if he had lived longer,
he might have come round to saying,
well, it's not what I meant, but it's very nice.
Thank you very much.
I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Oh yes.
-You're a real "Star Wars" icon.
You have not only been in the six movies, but also
in the dreadful holiday special, and the Clone Wars, and the--
-He said "a holiday special."
-Did I?
I didn't say sequel, at least.
And you've been in the Clone Wars and the Droids Series,
and whatnot.
So--
-Your ankles disappear if you say there's a sequel.
-[GASPS] My god.
Said nothing.
No.
-[INAUDIBLE] Go on.
-There must've been-- there must have been one day in your life
when you really have been fed up with "Star Wars," it?
-What do you mean, one day?
There's been acres of my life where I've
been fed up with "Star Wars."
Acres and acres and acres and acres, yes.
Often, there's not much fun being inside here.
It's the only way you can do it though.
So many days in my life, I'm like, please, please, please
get your lines right on this take.
Please, I don't want to stay here anymore.
Thank you.
Yes, lots of days like that.
So--
Because it takes energy to create a character.
And for any act, whatever the character
is, particularly with him, because he's
very tense and uptight.
So it is a [DEEP BREATH] a real getting and becoming very, very
tense.
Now technically, that becomes very wearing no matter
how many relaxation exercises you can, [NYAH] you know.
You learn, as an actor, to do all this stuff, which
makes it look really stupid.
But actually if you didn't, you'd end up ah-ah-ah,
like that, you see?
Oh, sorry.
-One last question.
The rock star has an audience reaction every night.
Now at the celebration, you don't only
get to meet the band, but also the fans.
-It's one reason to come here that-- it's difficult,
because you're not looking for-- you're not
grabbing for attention.
Yes, you're not looking for attention.
You're looking for a correspondence, if you will.
So that in a film, there is actually no correspondence
with the actors.
You're sitting, watching light bouncing off the screen.
That's it.
Or, if it's digital, light emitting from a screen.
The actors are not behind, doing all the things.
So there's no intellectual, actual relationship at all.
In a place like this, you can actually
have an eye-to-eye contact.
I will not be dressed up as 3PO, but I
will be as it were, the spirit of him, dressed in a rather
more lightweight costume.
And that's why it's good to have these events.
And it's good that people feel they want to come
from around the world to them.
And it's good that Lucasfilm bring all these properties
together.
Not in their own backyard.
We're a long, long way from California.