C-3PO star Anthony Daniels reacts to fears of his Episode IX exit: “It all comes to an end with a wonderful full stop”
The final Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker trailers had fans worried for Threepio – but will this really be the last we see of the protocol droid?
When Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’s final trailer was released last week, the most emotional moment came from an unexpected source – Anthony Daniels’ longstanding droid character C-3PO, whose comment that he was taking “one last look, sir…at [his] friends” gave fans across the world a serious case of the feels and some fears about Threepio’s fate in Episode IX.
And recently, when RadioTimes.com caught up with Daniels to talk about his new autobiography I Am C-3PO, the actor says he was far from surprised at the response.
“Well, it got me on the set too, saying those lines,” Daniels told RadioTimes.com. “It did feel very sad.
“I've seen a few reactions. I've been busy, but on Twitter, people have reacted very lovingly, so that's nice.
“People do relate to Threepio, because he has a kind of vulnerability, a fragility, if you will, that makes you want to take care of him. And for many people, he has been such a part of their family, for all these years, that anything that is slightly [touching it] is going to affect them.”
As to whether C-3PO could be set for a franchise-ending deactivation after being the only character in all nine saga movies, well, Daniels isn’t telling – though he doubts that he’d stop voicing the character in animated spin-offs, games and other media even if he does kick the bucket.
“This is the end of the Skywalker saga, and he's a part of that,” Daniels told us.
“So, very definitely, he and Skywalker and whoever will not be on film again, in the way you’re used to.
“Both Threepio and I feel satisfied, and sort of right that it all comes to an end with a wonderful sort of full stop. And I'm not unhappy about that. It was very moving, the last day on the set. That was really quite difficult for me.
“But I doubt it's the last time we will hear Threepio's voice or see him. Because George [Lucas], as I've written in the book, eventually kept my original performance vocally, that's meant that I've been so lucky to do so many spin-off activities - whether it's games, or cartoons, animations, whatever.
“So, yes. I probably think there will be other spinoffs, as you mentioned. I hope so. Because I like working. Still go to work every day. Rise of Skywalker was quite hard work on that basis.”
Though perhaps not quite as much work as condensing decades of Star Wars work into one volume of autobiography, including a few slightly tougher anecdotes, as Daniels went on to explain…
“It wasn't my idea,” he laughed, “somebody asked me to. But then, as I began to write, I found some of it quite interesting and some of it quite difficult.
“I decided that I would say things that I hadn't really spoken about, and [had been] possibly less happy about. At the time, people were enjoying the films so much, that why would I want to spoil it?
“But some of those negative feelings that I had at the time did need to come out. And as people will read, it was quite a difficult time for me. But then, as time moved on, things changed.
“And most people's lives are ups and downs. But I wanted to give a slightly rounder picture of what it was like, what it is like, what it has been like. I mean, the trailer came out just recently! I thought it was very good.”
And we can only hope it doesn’t mark a last hurrah for C-3PO himself.
I Am C-3PO: The Inside Story by Anthony Daniels is published by DK, £18.99 (publishes on 31st October)
Authors
Huw Fullerton is a Commissioning Editor for Radio Times magazine, covering Entertainment, Comedy and Specialist Drama.
