List of Star Wars original trilogy characters

Luke Skywalker Luke Skywalker is a young adult raised by his aunt and uncle on Tatooine, who dreams of something more than his current life and learns about the Force and the Jedi. Eventually, he becomes a pilot in the Rebel Alliance and an apprentice Jedi. After training with Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, he is one of the last living Jedi Knights. The character was portrayed by Mark Hamill in all three films. Lucas favored casting young actors who lacked long experience. To play Luke (then known as Luke Starkiller), Lucas sought actors who could project intelligence and integrity. While reading the script, Hamill found the dialogue to be extremely odd because of its universe-embedded concepts. He chose to simply read it sincerely, and he was cast instead of William Katt, who was subsequently cast in Brian De Palma's Carrie (Lucas shared a joint casting session with De Palma, a longtime friend). Robby Benson, Will Seltzer, Charles Martin Smith and Kurt Russell also auditioned for the role. Han Solo Han Solo is a cynical smuggler and captain of the Millennium Falcon. He becomes a general in the rebellion, and Leia's love interest. The character was portrayed by Harrison Ford in all three films. Lucas initially rejected casting Ford for the role, as he "wanted new faces"; Ford had previously worked with Lucas on American Graffiti. Instead, Lucas asked Ford to assist in the auditions by reading lines with the other actors and explaining the concepts and history behind the scenes that they were reading. Lucas was eventually won over by Ford's portrayal and cast him instead of Kurt Russell, Nick Nolte, Sylvester Stallone, Bill Murray, Christopher Walken, Burt Reynolds, Jack Nicholson, James Caan, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Steve Martin, Chevy Chase, or Perry King (who later played Han Solo in the radio plays). Leia Organa Leia Organa is the princess of the planet Alderaan who is a member of the Imperial Senate and, secretly, one of the leaders of the Rebel Alliance. The character was portrayed by Carrie Fisher in all three films. Many young Hollywood actresses auditioned for the role of Princess Leia, including Amy Irving, Terri Nunn, Cindy Williams, Linda Purl, Karen Allen, Koo Stark was considered but ended up getting the role of Camie Marstrap, Luke Skywalker's friend, a character that didn't make the final cut of the film. Fisher was cast under the condition that she lose for the role. Grand Moff Tarkin Grand Moff Tarkin is the Imperial commander of the Death Star. The character was portrayed by Peter Cushing in A New Hope. Lucas originally offered the role to Christopher Lee but he declined. Lucas originally had Cushing in mind for the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi, but Lucas believed that "his lean features" would be better employed in the role of Tarkin instead. Lucas commended Cushing's performance, saying "[He] is a very good actor. Adored and idolized by young people and by people who go to see a certain kind of movie. I feel he will be fondly remembered for the next 350 years at least." Cushing, commenting on his role, joked: "I've often wondered what a 'Grand Moff' was. It sounds like something that flew out of a cupboard." Obi-Wan Kenobi Obi-Wan Kenobi, also known as Ben Kenobi or Old Ben, is an aging Jedi Master and veteran of the Clone Wars who introduces Luke to the Force. The character was portrayed by Alec Guinness in all three films. Lucas's decision to cast "unknowns" was not taken favorably by his friend Francis Ford Coppola and the studio, so Lucas decided Obi-Wan Kenobi should be played by an established actor. Producer Gary Kurtz said, "The Alec Guinness role required a certain stability and gravitas as a character... which meant we needed a very, very strong character actor to play that part." Before Guinness was cast, Japanese actor Toshiro Mifune (who starred in many Akira Kurosawa films) was considered for the role. According to Mifune's daughter, Mika Kitagawa, her father turned down Lucas' offers to play Kenobi and Darth Vader because "he was concerned about how the film would look and that it would cheapen the image of samurai... At the time, sci-fi movies still looked quite cheap as the effects were not advanced and he had a lot of samurai pride." Guinness was one of the few cast members who believed that the film would be successful; he negotiated a deal for 2.25% of the one-fifth gross royalties paid to Lucas, which made him quite wealthy in later life. He agreed to take the part of Kenobi on the condition that he would not have to do any publicity to promote the film. Lucas credited him with inspiring the cast and crew to work harder, saying that Guinness contributed significantly to the completion of the filming. Harrison Ford said, "It was, for me, fascinating to watch Alec Guinness. He was always prepared, always professional, always very kind to the other actors. He had a very clear head about how to serve the story." Initially, Lucas did not intend to use Daniels' voice for C-3PO. Thirty well-established voice actors read for the voice of the droid. According to Daniels, one of the major voice actors, believed by some sources to be Stan Freberg, recommended Daniels' voice for the role. Mel Blanc was considered for the role, but according to Daniels, Blanc told Lucas that Daniels was better for the part. Richard Dreyfuss was also considered. R2-D2 R2-D2, or Artoo Detoo, is an astromech droid and C-3PO's companion, who is carrying the Death Star plans and a secret message for Obi-Wan from Princess Leia. The character was portrayed by Kenny Baker in all three films. When filming was under way in London, where additional casting took place, Baker, performing a musical comedy act with his acting partner Jack Purvis, learned that the film crew was looking for a small person to fit inside a robot suit and maneuver it. Baker, who was tall, was cast immediately after meeting George Lucas. He said, "He saw me come in and said 'He'll do' because I was the smallest guy they'd seen up until then." He initially turned down the role three times, hesitant to appear in a film where his face would not be shown and hoping to continue the success of his comedy act, which had recently started to be televised. R2-D2's recognizable beeps and squeaks were made by sound designer Ben Burtt imitating "baby noises", recording this voice as it was heard on an intercom, and creating the final mix using a synthesizer. Chewbacca Chewbacca is a Wookiee, Han Solo's sidekick, and first mate of the Millennium Falcon. The character was portrayed by Peter Mayhew in all three films. Mayhew learned of a casting call for Star Wars, which was being shot in London, and decided to audition. The tall actor was immediately cast as Chewbacca after he stood up to greet Lucas. He recounted, "I sat down on one of the sofas, waiting for George. Door opened, and George walked in with Gary behind him. So, naturally, what did I do? I'm raised in England. Soon as someone comes in through the door, I stand up. George goes 'Hmm [looked up].' Virtually turned to Gary, and said 'I think we've found him.' Anakin Skywalker / Darth Vader Darth Vader is Obi-Wan's former Jedi apprentice, who fell to the dark side of the Force. The character was portrayed by David Prowse in the suit. Lucas dismissed Prowse for the character's voice due to his West Country English accent, which led to him being nicknamed "Darth Farmer" by the other cast members. James Earl Jones served as the voice of Darth Vader; he was uncredited until 1983. Lucas originally intended for Orson Welles to voice the character after dismissing Prowse. However, determining that Welles' voice would be too familiar to audiences, Lucas instead cast then-relatively less recognizable Jones. In Return of the Jedi, after Anakin is redeemed by his son, Sebastian Shaw portrays the character when the helmet is removed. He also portrays the Force spirit of Anakin seen at the end of the film, though this footage was replaced with Hayden Christensen as the younger Anakin from the prequel trilogy in the Special Edition of the film. Lando Calrissian Lando Calrissian is the administrator of Cloud City, and an old friend and rival of Han Solo. The character was portrayed by Billy Dee Williams in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Yoda Yoda is a wise, centuries-old Jedi Master of an unknown diminutive alien species, who lives in exile on Dagobah and trained Luke. The character was voiced and puppeteered by Frank Oz in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. The Emperor The Emperor is the founder and supreme ruler of the Galactic Empire and Darth Vader's Sith master. The character was first physically portrayed by Elaine Baker and voiced by Clive Revill in the theatrical release of The Empire Strikes Back. Ian McDiarmid would fully take over the role in Return of the Jedi, and the 2004 release of the Special Editions replaced the version in Empire with a new performance by McDiarmid to maintain internal consistency. == Other notable characters ==