George Lucas launched the epic space opera franchise Star Wars with the 1977 original film, which gained critical acclaim and was a box office hit. The film introduced viewers to a galaxy far, far away populated by a host of unique and interesting characters who became instant icons of modern pop culture.
During an interview, actor David Prowse, best known for being the original actor to play Darth Vader, opened up about his experience with the franchise. In the process, Prowse revealed that he was initially offered a different fan-favorite original trilogy character but instead opted to play Vader. Here is the other Star Wars role offered to Prowse that he turned down.
Darth Vader actor David Prowse turned down a different iconic Star Wars role
David Prowse played the role of Darth Vader in the first Star Wars movie directed by George Lucas. Before the film, Prowse was mostly known for his bodybuilding career and appearances as the superhero Green Cross Man.
During an interview with StarWarz.com, Prowse opened up about his casting as Vader in the 1977 film. Prowse revealed that when he was approached for the space opera film, he was given a choice between playing the villain and the fan-favorite Wookie alien character Chewbacca.
The first was Chewbacca which I turned down as I was trying to get away from playing creatures and masked roles.
Prowse made the above statement, explaining that Lucas had approached him for potentially playing the alien role after his performance in Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange.
After the actor rejected the role, it eventually went to Peter Mayhew who became synonymous with Chewbacca. Meanwhile, Prowse explained that since Vader was the primary villain in Lucas’ script, he was inclined to it so much so that the character being masked did not bother him.
David Prowse revealed the Star Wars movie he disliked working on
During the same interview, Prowse was also asked about his experience of working on the original trilogy. The late actor revealed that working on the first installment was one of the best experiences he had. However, he disliked filming the final installment of the trilogy.
Jedi was by far the worst for me. I was virtually ostracized during the filming through no fault of my own and was allowed very little input.
Prowse made the above statement, highlighting how Lucas opted for a different actor when Vader was finally unmasked at the end of Return of the Jedi.
According to some reports, Lucas and Prowse allegedly had a falling out over the latter spoiling the big Vader twist during a public appearance. As a result, Prowse later confirmed that he was prohibited from attending any official Star Wars events. Therefore, it is easy to understand why Prowse’s experience with the franchise soured.
The Star Wars movies are streaming on Disney+.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
