Mark Hamill
Mark Richard Hamill (/ˈhæməl/; born September 25, 1951) is an American actor. He starred as Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars franchise, in the original and sequel trilogies.
Mark Hamill
- Actor
- voice artist
- writer
1970–present
3
Through the 1980s, Hamill distinguished himself from his role in the original Star Wars trilogy by pursuing a theatre career on Broadway, starring in productions of The Elephant Man, Amadeus and The Nerd. His other live-action film and television roles include Kenneth W. Dantley Jr. in Corvette Summer (1978), Private Griff in The Big Red One (1980), Crow in Sushi Girl (2012), Ted Mitchum in Brigsby Bear (2017), and Arthur Pym in the Netflix miniseries The Fall of the House of Usher (2023).
Hamill has also had a prolific career as a voice actor, known for voicing the Joker in various DC Comics projects, commencing with Batman: The Animated Series in 1992. Other voice roles include the Hobgoblin in Spider-Man: The Animated Series (1995–1998), Fire Lord Ozai in Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005–2008), Mr. Salacia and Senator Stampingston in Metalocalypse (2006–2013, 2023), and Skips in Regular Show (2010–2017).
Early life
Mark Richard Hamill was born on September 25, 1951, in Oakland, California, to Virginia Suzanne (née Johnson) and William Thomas Hamill, a U.S. Navy Captain.[1] He is one of seven children, with two brothers, Will and Patrick, and four sisters, Terry, Jan, Jeanie, and Kim.[2] His father has English, Irish, Scottish, and Welsh ancestry and his mother was of half Swedish and half English descent.[3][4] Hamill has described his father as a staunch Roman Catholic, and "Nixon Republican".[5]
His father's changes of station and attendant family moves led to the Hamill children switching schools often. During his elementary years, he attended Walsingham Academy in Williamsburg, Virginia, and Edgar Allan Poe Middle School in Annandale, Virginia.[6] At age 11, he moved to the 5900 block of Castleton Drive in San Diego, California, where he attended Hale Junior High School.[7] During his first year at James Madison High School in San Diego, his family moved back to Virginia, and Hamill attended Annandale High School.[8] By his junior year, his father was stationed in Japan, where Hamill attended and was a member of the Drama Club at Nile C. Kinnick High School, from which he graduated in 1969.[9][10] He later enrolled at Los Angeles City College, majoring in drama.[8]
Personal life
According to a 1981 profile in People, Hamill's "first serious love" was actress Anne Wyndham, cast as his sister on General Hospital, with whom he had an offscreen relationship.[8] He would later describe experiencing seasons of on-set awkwardness while working with her after their relationship ended.[125] In a 2017 interview, he attributed his long, happy marriage to a non-actor to learning, through his relationship with Wyndham, the dangers of being in a relationship with a fellow actor.[126]
On December 17, 1978, Hamill married dental hygienist Marilou York in a private civil ceremony.[127] They have three children: Nathan Elias, Griffin Tobias, and Chelsea Elizabeth.[128] Nathan was born during the production of The Empire Strikes Back and had a cameo appearance as one of the Royal Guards of Naboo in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace.[129] Chelsea made a photographic appearance as an infant Axel Walker in the 1990 television series The Flash; the same photograph was used in the 2014 series.[130] All three have cameos as Resistance soldiers in The Last Jedi.[131]
On January 11, 1977, before shooting one of his scenes in Star Wars, Hamill was in a car accident in which he fractured his nose and left cheekbone.[132] As a result, a double was used for the landspeeder pickup shots.[133]
Hamill is an outspoken advocate of the Democratic Party and has supported its candidates. Prior to the 2012 presidential election, he referred to Mitt Romney as a "snake oil salesman".[134] He endorsed P.G. Sittenfeld in the 2016 Ohio Senate election.[135] He has also criticized the tweets of Donald Trump by reading them out in his Joker voice.[136]
Hamill was also an early fan of David Letterman, having occasionally appeared on Late Night with David Letterman, as well as taping every episode and keeping a journal documenting the show. After encountering writer Chris Elliott, Hamill was asked for assistance in helping determine the 1,000th Viewer Mail that Letterman had answered. His practice continued to Letterman's new show on CBS, but eventually stopped.[137]
In October 2023, Hamill, along with more than 700 other Hollywood professionals, signed an open letter condemning the terrorist group Hamas, demanding the release of hostages held in Gaza, and expressing support for Israel in the 2023 Israel–Hamas war.[138]
Charity
On September 29, 2022, Hamill became an ambassador of the United24 fundraising platform, which raises funds to support Ukraine in the war against Russia.[139][140] On March 25, 2023, a drawing was held for posters signed by Mark Hamill; it raised more than $300,000 for RQ-35 Heidrun reconnaissance drones.[141][142][143]