8. Robert Englund Told Mark Hamill About The Star Wars Audition
Robert Englund is the actor most famous for portraying nightmarish murderer Freddy Krueger in the A Nightmare In Elm Street films. A little known fact concerning Englund, however, is that he was once Mark Hamill's roommate for a while in the '70s - and it's all thanks to Englund that Hamill ended up playing Luke Skywalker in the iconic saga. Seriously, after Englund failed to get a part as a surfer in Apocalypse Now, Francis Ford Coppola directed him to George Lucas to audition for the part of Han Solo. He didn't get that, either, of course, but - upon returning home - he told Mark Hamill something that would change his life forever. In Englund's own words:
"I went home and told a little kid that was sleeping on my couch, after a six-pack of Heineken, all about , and his name was Mark Hamill. I said, Hey, Lucas is doing this space movie. Maybe youre right for it."
Hamill got in touch with his agent, and went off to see George Lucas the very next day.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
