Acting In Star Wars

trevyclause

Let's go real world for a bit. Vote for who you think is the greatest actor to ever grace the galaxy far-far away, and say why. Take into account whatever you want. What they brought to the screen in just the Star Wars films, their entire body of work, how easy they were to work with, etc.

The below list is who I think deserves a spot, but add someone who you think should be included. Honorable Mentions that I'd like to list but can't because there's only 10 spots available: Alec Guiness (Old Ben), Liam Neeson (Qui-Gon), Samuel "Has-Been-In-Every-Movie-Known-To-Man" Jackson (You know who he played), Matt Lanter (Clone Wars Anakin), Ashley Eckstein (Clone Wars/Rebels Ahsoka Tano).

Side note: Natalie Portman probably deserves to be on the list. And maybe (I said maybe) Hayden Christiansen (seems weird leaving him off as Anakin is my favorite character of all Star Wars). But, GL did not do them any favors as their director. Under a different director it would be a different story. But we have to take the Star Wars that is, not what we wish it would be.

trevyclause

Adam Driver (Kylo/Ben)

I go with Adam Driver. Just what he brings to the character is pretty believable. Young dude who is incredibly torn and who it prone to fits of rage and tantrums, and ***SPOILER***SPOILER*** who ends up being redeemed ***END SPOILER***, Adam Driver makes it believable. That's not even counting his other work in other films ("I'm about to eat NACHOS!" anyone?) and on the stage.

Second choice is a tie between Ian McDiarmid and Ewan McGreggor.

Edit: added spolier warning haha.

EventineElessedil

Harrison Ford (Han)

I could go on and on about which actors I like best and why ... but instead right now I'm just going on record and say that Mark Hamill did a fantastic job with his character and played Farmboy Luke, Commander Luke, and Jedi Luke exactly as he needed to be played. People like to harp on the whining farmboy portrayal, but that's what farmboy was and we see him grow up a lot through the film while he struggles. No he wasn't the best actor in the series but he did great in the role.
Not only that, but he also did a fantastic job with Hermit Luke. He didn't agree with how the character was written but even so he did his best and nailed the role. A toast to Mark Hamill!

EventineElessedil

Harrison Ford (Han)

trevyclause wrote: »

I go with Adam Driver. Just what he brings to the character is pretty believable. Young dude who is incredibly torn and who it prone to fits of rage and tantrums, and

***SPOILER***SPOILER*** who ends up being redeemed, ***END SPOILER***

Adam Driver makes it believable. That's not even counting his other work in other films ("I'm about to eat NACHOS!" anyone?) and on the stage.

Second choice is a tie between Ian McDiarmid and Ewan McGreggor.

Edit: added spolier warning haha.

Dude ... (s)Thanks for the spoiler tags.(/s) At least learn how to do it right, it isn't hard.

LordDirt

Other

Liam Neeson

Vendi1983

Adam Driver (Kylo/Ben)

Adam Driver was the best part of the ST. His other work is also fantastic. Marriage Story is phenomenal. His comedic chops are also up there, as evidenced by his appearance on SNL.

trevyclause

Adam Driver (Kylo/Ben)

Vendi1983 wrote: »

Adam Driver was the best part of the ST. His other work is also fantastic. Marriage Story is phenomenal. His comedic chops are also up there, as evidenced by his appearance on SNL.

Matt!

CCyrilS

Other

How can you leave out Sir Christopher Lee?!

Boo

Ewan McGreggor (Obi-Wan)

I think my top 2 are Ewan McGreggor and Ian McDiarmid.

I think top spot goes to Ewan, for his accent and how he had to study Alec to be a believable "younger version". I thought he acted well and was believable in his role. Not to mention his lightsaber choreography.

Ian I like because he such a great villain - he is so dramatic and theatrical and carries such a presence with his character and every scene he is in.

Notably the OT 3 - Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford were fantastic and really sold the original trilogy. Without them at the helm of the first star wars content ever - the franchise would never have taken off as well as it did.

Adam Driver was probably the best new actor for the ST, but even his acting is pretty monotone and blah, in my opinion. I think he did a terrific job with what he had to work with and is probably the best thing about the ST.

Other actors I connect with through other works who I love as actors and love the fact they were part of this franchise are Harrison Ford (deserving a 2nd mention), Liam Neeson and Christopher Lee.

trevyclause

Adam Driver (Kylo/Ben)

CCyrilS wrote: »

How can you leave out Sir Christopher Lee?!

Gah! Too true! Powerful yet elegant. Menacing yet gracious. All at the same time. Sarudooku!

CCyrilS

Other

trevyclause wrote: »

CCyrilS wrote: »

How can you leave out Sir Christopher Lee?!

Gah! Too true! Powerful yet elegant. Menacing yet gracious. All at the same time. Sarudooku!

Or Sarudookula (he was know for his dracula portrayals long before the others, if you didn't know)

Foxer

Other

Write in campaign for Warwick Davis... Wicket himself... also epic performances in Lepurchan 1-2-3 and 4(Lepurchan in space my favourite), Masters of the Universe, Willow, the Ewok movies, Harry Potter and many others... the go to midget(or person of limited height) in the film industry

CCyrilS

Other

Foxer wrote: »

Write in campaign for Warwick Davis... Wicket himself... also epic performances in Lepurchan 1-2-3 and 4(Lepurchan in space my favourite), Masters of the Universe, Willow, the Ewok movies, Harry Potter and many others... the go to midget(or person of limited height) in the film industry

Definitely no, but I still love it. Haven't seen Willow since I was a kid, but I think I have to now.

Chucko_marek

I don't know if I can pick an actor/actress. There is just so much going on, and there are so many memorable performers not listed.

Alan Tudyk, AndySerkis, Peter Cushing for examples. How does one make a list on SW actors and not mention Alec Guiness?

All I know is that a lot of talent has worked in the franchise and it is really hard to pick just one.

DaarthBrewer

Chucko_marek wrote: »

How does one make a list on SW actors and not mention Alec Guiness?

Ninja'd me.

MagicMatthews99

Ian McDiarmid (Palps)

I'm voting Ian, but I would give a huge honourable mention to Sam Witwer, voice of Darth Maul in CW & Rebels, Palpatine in Rebels & TFU, and Starkiller in TFU.

CCyrilS

Other

Chucko_marek wrote: »

I don't know if I can pick an actor/actress. There is just so much going on, and there are so many memorable performers not listed.

Alan Tudyk, AndySerkis, Peter Cushing for examples. How does one make a list on SW actors and not mention Alec Guiness?

All I know is that a lot of talent has worked in the franchise and it is really hard to pick just one.

Alec guiness was mentioned. Literally first under honorable mentions lol

Boo

Ewan McGreggor (Obi-Wan)

CCyrilS wrote: »

Foxer wrote: »

Write in campaign for Warwick Davis... Wicket himself... also epic performances in Lepurchan 1-2-3 and 4(Lepurchan in space my favourite), Masters of the Universe, Willow, the Ewok movies, Harry Potter and many others... the go to midget(or person of limited height) in the film industry

Definitely no, but I still love it. Haven't seen Willow since I was a kid, but I think I have to now.

Its on Disney+ and apparently a series is now in the works.

Chucko_marek

CCyrilS wrote: »

Chucko_marek wrote: »

I don't know if I can pick an actor/actress. There is just so much going on, and there are so many memorable performers not listed.

Alan Tudyk, AndySerkis, Peter Cushing for examples. How does one make a list on SW actors and not mention Alec Guiness?

All I know is that a lot of talent has worked in the franchise and it is really hard to pick just one.

Alec guiness was mentioned. Literally first under honorable mentions lol

How dare I not read. I can't believe I missed it.

cannonfodder_iv

Other

The most iconic voice of the most iconic villain is left off this list? BLASPHEMER. James Earl Jones of course (and Field of Dreams still gets me).

trevyclause

Adam Driver (Kylo/Ben)

cannonfodder_iv wrote: »

The most iconic voice of the most iconic villain is left off this list? BLASPHEMER. James Earl Jones of course (and Field of Dreams still gets me).

TigerSpirit1917

Other

I go with Frank Oz. He managed to make what was essentially a guest performer on the Muppet Show (George Lucas was apparently really worried about Yoda, and felt it would have sunk star wars if people went and thought they were looking at kermit the frog), and made him real and believable. Through one puppet, he managed to give cadence and a real feeling to the force.

Either that or Tim Rose for his portrayal of Salicious Crumb (who really needs to be in this game 😁)

trevyclause

Adam Driver (Kylo/Ben)

TigerSpirit1917 wrote: »

Either that or Tim Rose for his portrayal of Salicious Crumb (who really needs to be in this game 😁)

Crumb could be a summoned character by Jabba.

DaarthBrewer

trevyclause wrote: »

Crumb could be a summoned character by Jabba.

Basic: Chew your eye out.

Chucko_marek

AntiFunn wrote: »

Palpatine is the most beloved villain in Star Wars no doubt. But as many have said, I think it is almost a tie between Ewan and Ian. Ewan personally just loves Obi-Wan and we are all super thrilled to be seeing him in the new series!

We know Hayden Christensen is hated and downvoted by many fans but he also did a Super good job in my opinion. Obviously plot errors and jamming too much content into Episode 2 and 3 did not make a good development visible. He has always appreciated his role in SW and has said in an interview that he just begged to play Lord Vader in Ep3 (instead of a different actor with a taller figure). Shows his overall love and enthusiasm. If we say favorite character, I would say Anakin all the way.

Yeah, have to agree that Hayden did a good job. One cannot simply out act the script. If you have a garbage script to work with, you're not going to perform better.

cannonfodder_iv

Other

Chucko_marek wrote: »

AntiFunn wrote: »

Palpatine is the most beloved villain in Star Wars no doubt. But as many have said, I think it is almost a tie between Ewan and Ian. Ewan personally just loves Obi-Wan and we are all super thrilled to be seeing him in the new series!

We know Hayden Christensen is hated and downvoted by many fans but he also did a Super good job in my opinion. Obviously plot errors and jamming too much content into Episode 2 and 3 did not make a good development visible. He has always appreciated his role in SW and has said in an interview that he just begged to play Lord Vader in Ep3 (instead of a different actor with a taller figure). Shows his overall love and enthusiasm. If we say favorite character, I would say Anakin all the way.

Yeah, have to agree that Hayden did a good job. One cannot simply out act the script. If you have a garbage script to work with, you're not going to perform better.

Don't forgot to pile on horrific direction.

Chucko_marek

cannonfodder_iv wrote: »

Chucko_marek wrote: »

AntiFunn wrote: »

Palpatine is the most beloved villain in Star Wars no doubt. But as many have said, I think it is almost a tie between Ewan and Ian. Ewan personally just loves Obi-Wan and we are all super thrilled to be seeing him in the new series!

We know Hayden Christensen is hated and downvoted by many fans but he also did a Super good job in my opinion. Obviously plot errors and jamming too much content into Episode 2 and 3 did not make a good development visible. He has always appreciated his role in SW and has said in an interview that he just begged to play Lord Vader in Ep3 (instead of a different actor with a taller figure). Shows his overall love and enthusiasm. If we say favorite character, I would say Anakin all the way.

Yeah, have to agree that Hayden did a good job. One cannot simply out act the script. If you have a garbage script to work with, you're not going to perform better.

Don't forgot to pile on horrific direction.

Yeah, then there is the directing... Whenever I hear people complain about the character of Anakin, I can't help but think of Jake Lloyd. Kid got verbally abused by adults. It's kinda wrong to blame only the actor for a bad performance.

Boo

Ewan McGreggor (Obi-Wan)

cannonfodder_iv wrote: »

Chucko_marek wrote: »

AntiFunn wrote: »

Palpatine is the most beloved villain in Star Wars no doubt. But as many have said, I think it is almost a tie between Ewan and Ian. Ewan personally just loves Obi-Wan and we are all super thrilled to be seeing him in the new series!

We know Hayden Christensen is hated and downvoted by many fans but he also did a Super good job in my opinion. Obviously plot errors and jamming too much content into Episode 2 and 3 did not make a good development visible. He has always appreciated his role in SW and has said in an interview that he just begged to play Lord Vader in Ep3 (instead of a different actor with a taller figure). Shows his overall love and enthusiasm. If we say favorite character, I would say Anakin all the way.

Yeah, have to agree that Hayden did a good job. One cannot simply out act the script. If you have a garbage script to work with, you're not going to perform better.

Don't forgot to pile on horrific direction.

I think the pivotal scene where Hayden really owned the role was his confession to Padme about the Tuskens - with the underlying music score, it was quite the sad yet chilling scene to watch.

TVF

Chucko_marek wrote: »

cannonfodder_iv wrote: »

Chucko_marek wrote: »

AntiFunn wrote: »

Palpatine is the most beloved villain in Star Wars no doubt. But as many have said, I think it is almost a tie between Ewan and Ian. Ewan personally just loves Obi-Wan and we are all super thrilled to be seeing him in the new series!

We know Hayden Christensen is hated and downvoted by many fans but he also did a Super good job in my opinion. Obviously plot errors and jamming too much content into Episode 2 and 3 did not make a good development visible. He has always appreciated his role in SW and has said in an interview that he just begged to play Lord Vader in Ep3 (instead of a different actor with a taller figure). Shows his overall love and enthusiasm. If we say favorite character, I would say Anakin all the way.

Yeah, have to agree that Hayden did a good job. One cannot simply out act the script. If you have a garbage script to work with, you're not going to perform better.

Don't forgot to pile on horrific direction.

Yeah, then there is the directing... Whenever I hear people complain about the character of Anakin, I can't help but think of Jake Lloyd. Kid got verbally abused by adults. It's kinda wrong to blame only the actor for a bad performance.

While this is true, I'll never forget the TPM doc where they show the screen tests for three kids and they picked the worst one.

Boo

Ewan McGreggor (Obi-Wan)

TVF wrote: »

Chucko_marek wrote: »

cannonfodder_iv wrote: »

Chucko_marek wrote: »

AntiFunn wrote: »

Palpatine is the most beloved villain in Star Wars no doubt. But as many have said, I think it is almost a tie between Ewan and Ian. Ewan personally just loves Obi-Wan and we are all super thrilled to be seeing him in the new series!

We know Hayden Christensen is hated and downvoted by many fans but he also did a Super good job in my opinion. Obviously plot errors and jamming too much content into Episode 2 and 3 did not make a good development visible. He has always appreciated his role in SW and has said in an interview that he just begged to play Lord Vader in Ep3 (instead of a different actor with a taller figure). Shows his overall love and enthusiasm. If we say favorite character, I would say Anakin all the way.

Yeah, have to agree that Hayden did a good job. One cannot simply out act the script. If you have a garbage script to work with, you're not going to perform better.

Don't forgot to pile on horrific direction.

Yeah, then there is the directing... Whenever I hear people complain about the character of Anakin, I can't help but think of Jake Lloyd. Kid got verbally abused by adults. It's kinda wrong to blame only the actor for a bad performance.

While this is true, I'll never forget the TPM doc where they show the screen tests for three kids and they picked the worst one.

Hayden should have played Anakin from the get go. It looks weird that Portman was always the same, yet Anakin changes so much. It felt and looked weird this "love" between them in TPM, creepy really.

But sadly Lucas wanted to him to be a child that children in the audience could relate to - reel in the next gen of star wars fans and sell as many toys as possible.

Sadly TPM was full of politics, so outside of Qui-Gon, Obi Wan and Darth Maul - there was very little toys for kids to get excited about and the entire TPM toy line underperformed - so whenever the Star Wars franchise starts to fail, they fall back on the safety net of the OT. Hasbro, having taken over from Kenner, went back to the drawing board, released a whole line of OT toys and made a killing.