Where are they now? Star Wars actors whose careers took off, and tailed off
Some who’ve acted in the space franchise were already established stars; for others, such as Harrison Ford, it was the making of their career. But for Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill, roles as Princess Leia and Luke Skywalker were the high points
Appearing in Star Wars has been a blessing for some, and a curse for others. The intergalactic space saga turned Harrison Ford into a major star, but Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher struggled to emerge from Luke and Leia's towering shadows.
Ford, who portrays the seductive, intrepid smuggler Han Solo, rocketed to fame after the initial film and is arguably the franchise's biggest star. Shortly after first piloting the Millennium Falcon, the actor – a pilot in real life – fronted another massive franchise, the Indiana Jones films, and starred in sci-fi hit Blade Runner.
Other career highlights for the Hollywood A-lister, now aged 73, include two turns as Tom Clancy's hero Jack Ryan in Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger. He earned an Oscar nomination for best actor in 1986 for Witness.
Fisher, now 59, who struggled with addiction, didn't score roles on a par with her turn as Leia. She wrote a semi-autobiographical novel, Postcards From The Edge, as well as a screenplay for the film version starring Meryl Streep and Shirley MacLaine.
As with Fisher, the success of Star Wars did not translate into decades of fame for the now 64-year-old Hamill, who played the Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker. He has, though, built a successful career mainly as a voice actor for animated films and video games, including a turn as The Joker in Batman: The Animated Series.