Mark Hamill hasn’t let fame change him, and he’s not shy about saying so. The Star Wars legend, now 73, recently sat down with Willie Geist on Sunday Sitdown and opened up about life before, during, and after becoming Luke Skywalker.
At the time he was cast in George Lucas’ groundbreaking space saga, Hamill was far from a household name, he’d only had a few minor roles on shows like General Hospital and The Bill Cosby Show. Still, landing Star Wars rocketed him into global recognition alongside co-stars Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher.
“I was completely unknown,” Hamill recalled. “You just try and reassure yourself that nothing has changed. I haven’t changed, people around me are going nuts.”
It’s clear that Hamill never bought into the Hollywood hype. While the fame was instant, his mindset stayed rooted. Even today, decades after Luke Skywalker became a cultural icon, he’s the same guy who once peeked through neighbors’ windows just to catch a glimpse of color television.
“Two things stick out,” he said when asked where his passion for performance came from. “My father said that color TV was a fad. I remember sneaking around the neighborhood, jumping fences into backyards of people I knew had color TVs, and watching through the windows.”
It was this curiosity, and a sense of wonder, that sparked a lifelong dream. “I saw a black-and-white King Kong on television when I was probably in early grade school,” Hamill added. “I thought, ‘Somebody goes to work and makes dinosaurs come to life? I want that job!’”
But Hamill’s dream wasn’t exactly encouraged at home. His father, a Navy man with strong ideas about success, had different expectations.
“My dad said I should either join the navy or be like my older brother and go to medical school,” Hamill shared. “My older brother is Dr. Hamill, the success of the family. But I wanted to be in the business of make-believe, the escapism business.”
And that’s exactly what he did. Hamill’s career may have started with a sci-fi blockbuster, but he went on to build a diverse portfolio, including acclaimed voice work as the Joker in Batman: The Animated Series and many other roles in film and TV.
Still, to this day, Mark Hamill on staying grounded is more than a catchy phrase, it’s a life philosophy. Whether he’s talking about childhood mischief or his father’s skepticism, there’s a through line of humility, humor, and relentless passion for storytelling.
Fame never really changed him. It just gave him a bigger audience for his imagination.
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