SAMUEL JACKSON
Edward Eldred sent the following:
Samuel L. Jackson did a little commercial on ESPN a few nights ago in which he mentioned that he was in the upcoming prequels. He said he had some behind the scenes footage. They panned over to an obviously fake Chewbacca and Samuel l. had him working on his roars. Mike Piazza took off the mask and was complaining that the suit itched. Samuel L. Jackson is hosting the ESPYs and so maybe he'll be saying something or future commercials or something...
8:30 am CST
Myrden heard a cool interview on the radio
Samuel L. Jackson was just on "Canada AM" to promote his new movie (November 13, 1998 7:50am). He said a couple of interesting things that I thought I would pass on:
1. He said that his character was Mace Windu (as we all know), but that Mace is the head of the Jedi Council! I thought that was surprising.
2. Said that last week he was doing voice overs for the movie in the Bahamas.
3. Was asked by the interviewer (A woman named Valerie Pringle) if the lightsaber hummed when he used it! Jackson replied, "I don't know, I never got to turn it on!" - a really cute remark I thought b/c of the CGI.
4. He also said that he has NO idea what the plot of the movie is. Like Woody Allen, Lucas only gives actors/actresses the script for their specific part, so Jackson said he only received 5 pages of script.
5. Jackson said he was "real happy" that his figure was the first one to come out... he received one the other day that thought it was "so cool."
Note that doing the voiceovers in the Bahamas confirms Harry's Frank Oz report from a few days ago. Oz said he was doing voiceovers there recently, too.
Brian Robinson sent us the following:
Hot off our screens in Britain! Tonight on the weekly televised National Lottery, the special guests included supermodel Caprice and the coolest Jedi master ever, Samuel L.Jackson!!!! He was just on to promote his new movie "Eve's Bayou" but host Bob Monkhouse mentioned the prequels to him, stating that he would be playing Mace Windu, to which Jackson replied "YES". I guess that makes that official. Bob asked Jackson if he would say those immortal words "May The Force Be With You" as he released the lottery balls (Jackson being the first to utter the immortal phrase in episode 1). He said he would and went up to the podium, where Caprice was standing. He was about to say it when her holiness Caprice quickly interjected, saying "Oh, can I say it?!" and without giving him a chance said the line!!!! Can you believe it? A Jedi Knight pipped at the post by a supermodel! Needless to say that fans in Britain will not be amused at this, but maybe he isn't allowed to speak this line since it appears in the movie and is supposed to be top secret (ha ha!). Ah well, just thought I'd let you know.
We're not quite sure what "pipped at the post" means, but hopefully it's suitable for children to read. If not, we'll feel lower than a wart on a horny toad's belly. Yup, some of us are from Texas. Jackson continued to make the rounds as Mike Rice informed us:
"You said yesterday was a slow day so I thought you might want to know this. I live in England and the time now is 8:46am (GMT) and at 7:46am (GMT) Samuel L. Jackson was live on GMTV (Good Morning Television). It looks like he is doing some promo work in this country. He didn't really say anything new but here is the Star Wars conversation:
The presenter started talking about Jackson's changing appearance in his films, "And you've got no hair, have you, in Star Wars."(holding up Uk Star Wars magazine, with Jedi Jackson on cover. "What was that like, taking part in the prequel?"
Jackson: " Luckily I was here (England), I think I was on the Chris Evan's show, and I mentioned the fact that I wanted to be in the new Star Wars movie, and George Lucas' company called and invited me to the ranch and we talked for a while. All of a sudden last year he called and said, "OK, I have something for you, it's only a few days but if you want to do it your welcome to it," and I said, "put me on a plane.""
Presenter: "This film is shrouded in secrecy, I think you only received 6 pages of script didn't you?"
Jackson: " I have no idea what happens before my scenes or what happens after I'm done. But I do know that my character doesn't die, so hopefully he'll have the opportunity to be in the other two."
It's good to see an interviewer actually do their research for once.
Samuel Jackson did yet another interview. This is from the BPI Entertainment News Wire. It's another excerpt from a S. L. Jackson interview promoting The Negotiator.
His next sci-fi gig is a guaranteed winner: a small role in George Lucas' ``Star Wars'' prequel. Security surrounding every aspect of this much- anticipated film is clearly tight. Asked to spill the beans about it, Jackson grins and says, ``It was directed by George Lucas ... Honestly, I don't have a clue what the movie's about. I saw the six pages [of the script] I'm in, and I don't know what happens before that or after that.''
He will allow that his character's name is ``Mace-Wandoo,'' but he only lets that information slip because it's already been published in a ``Star Wars'' (Insider) magazine. As for the rest of it, his lips are sealed. ``What am I doing in it?'' Jackson replies to yet another persistent query. He grins again. ``I'm getting paid!''
Before you write us about the "Mace Wandoo" thing, take note that the reporter screwed up. The Insider has officially confirmed that his name is "Mace Windu", just like from the ANH rough drafts.
Jam! Movies has posted an interview with Samuel L. Jackson. The following is what he had to say about his role in the Prequel:
"I got a letter yesterday saying, 'Don't talk (to the press)!' " he says, smiling. "You'll have to buy Star Wars magazine to find out anything."
12/19/97 - JACKSON FLUBS BIG LINE - Newshound Steve Head sent us the following humorous tidbit from the Chicago Sun Times;
JACKSON FLUBS BIG LINE
December 18, 1997
BY CINDY PEARLMAN
May the farce be with you. That could be the tag line for the new ``Star
Wars'' prequel since one of the stars, Samuel L. Jackson, almost turned
the whole deal into a comedy. In the new film, Jackson is supposed to
profoundly utter the now infamous line: ``May the force be with you.''
What was his motivation? ``Forget motivation. I had a big grin on my
face every single time I had to say it. I actually started laughing
uproariously. ... I had to wipe the smile off my face because [director]
George Lucas was getting really annoyed,'' Jackson told me. ``He said,
`Sam, it's a serious statement.' ''
STAR WOES: Jackson, a self-described ``Wars'' fanatic, says, he was
stunned to get the summons to be in the film. ``The call to come to the
ranch was like the bomb. One day I pick up the phone and this voice
says, `George hears you want to be in `Star Wars.' If you want to meet
him come to the ranch.' I said, `The real Skywalker Ranch? I'm leaving
my house right now.' '' Jackson, who is under contract not to disclose
his character's name or purpose did spill this much: ``All my scenes are
with Yoda.'' How's Yoda looking? ``Not bad for someone who is about
15,000 years old.''MORE SAM JACKSON FROM THE TONIGHT SHOW
Brian Linder 12:30 AM EST updated 9:47 am CST by ScottAnother prequel jewel was dropped on us tonight by one of the coolest cats in the Star Wars universe, Sam Jackson. Sam has been making his the rounds on the talk show circuit promoting his new film, Eve's Bayou. One of the most common questions he's been asked is, "Are you going to be in the new Star Wars films?". It was Jay Leno asking that question tonight, and Mr. Jackson had plenty to say. He reiterated the fact that he's involved in scenes with Yoda, and briefly commented on the irony of working in scenes with a puppet. Sure we've heard that much before, but we haven't heard some specifics he laid on us next. Sam talked briefly about how cool it was to be on the set in London, with Frank Oz controlling the Yoda puppet, and providing his voice. There were other other Muppeteers, behind the scenes, controlling Yoda's ears, eyes, and forehead. This sequence is obviously from a part of the film that we've heard little about, so stay tuned to TheForce.net!
UPDATE
Steve Head sent us this transcript of the conversation:
Leno: Now I heard, are you in the new Star Wars?
Jackson: Aaaah. Yeah. Aaaah. I did a few days there about a month or so ago, which is very cool, because I've actually had like a really great year where I looked up one day and I'm doin' this really dramatic scene and I looked up at the actor across from me and in the middle of the scene I go "Oh man! That's Dustin Hoffman! Look at that! Ha! Ha! I'm workin' with Dustin Hoffman!" But I had to hold it together because it was the middle of the scene. So I did it. And a month or so later I'm doin' Jackie Brown (for) Quienten. And my first big dramatic scene is with DeNiro. And I'm doin' this great big scene. I'm talkin', talkin', talkin'. And I look at him for the responce and he's kinda (Jackson imitates a cool DeNiro nodd). Is he underplayin' me or what? So I'm workin' with DeNiro all of a sudden. And then I get to London. And the first day I'm on this set, this big actor, the big actor next to me this day turns out to be Yoda!
Leno: Oh! Yoda!
Jackson: And it's like actually Yoda! And it's so cool because like Frank Oz is doin' him and he's like right hand and (Jackson holds his right arm up) and his hand is in him and he's workin' his mouth and theres sombody else who's his (Yoda's) right hand and another guys workin' his ears and eyes and another persons doin' his forehead. But when George says "Cut", Frank takes his hand out of him and Yoda's kind of like (Jackson slumps forward) slumped over like this, but his ears and eyes are still goin' ! His eyes are goin' back and forth and his ears are like goin' like this (Jackson gestures with his fingers over his head) and he's goin' (Jackson slouches more) and you got to worry bout'....Hey!....Come here!......Yoda's!......Check it out!....Come on! Get him up!....Come on and be O.K!...Wake up!....Get him up!....Somebody help him! He's sick!
3/29/98 - SAMUEL L. JACKSON ON ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT
 |
On what will be just one of hundreds of reports Entertainment Tonight
will do doling out doses of prequel tidbits, a report on Samuel L Jackson turned to a
brief prequel discussion. Of course, he wasn't all that forthcoming and nothing much new
was learned and in traditional ET-style some of the footage has been used before. When asked, "What can you tell us about Star Wars?" he replied "George Lucas directed it". The question "What do you play in Star Wars?" was answered, "I can't tell you that. If I told you I'd have to kill you." He goes on to say, "I met actors I wouldn't know if they walked in this room right now. A lot of them were spending four or five hours in makeup a day. It was pretty fantastic. Magical. It's funny, the little kid in the movie - Jake - had a great time. It's kind of like having the best job in the world with the biggest playground and the best toys... He's hanging out with Jedi Knights and Yoda and riding on all these really cool things... Great job! The stuff looks great!" We've posted a 2.5Mb Quicktime movie of the report for you to download if you just have to see if for yourself. If Anakin does indeed meet Yoda in the film, it will be interesting to learn why Vader doesn't seem to know him (or know that he's alive) in ROTJ. |
1/27/98 - SAM JACKSON REPORT
Meg R. sent us the following report. Not a lot new, but it is interesting hearing Sam
Jackson compare Lucas to Tarantino:
Hi. I don't know if anyone picked this up, but Samuel L. Jackson was interviewed by Ian Spelling's "Inside Trek" column today for his upcoming film Sphere. Anyway, half of the article ended up being about Episode 1. He didn't mention anything no one doesn't already know, but he still said some pretty interesting stuff. Here it is:
While sci-fi fans are eagre to see "Sphere," there's even more excitement
about "Star Wars, Episode I" the first film in the upcoming trilogy of
"Star Wars" prequels.
Jackson made it known that he'd be interested in working with director George Lucas, and
Lucas took him up on his interest, creating a cameo role for the actor in the recently
wrapped film, which should reach theaters in late 1998 or early 1999.
"It was cool," Jackson says of working with George Lucas. "George is even
more laid back than Quentin Tarantino, in terms of on-set cool. "He never raises his
voice. Stuff falls and planes fly by, but he doesn't stop for that. He keeps shooting.
"George is very specific. He comes to you if you have any questions about what you're
going to do. It was a good time."
Can Jackson shed any light on the story?
"I actually don't know the story," he says, a sly grin crossing his face.
"He gave me the pages that I was going to do, and that was all I saw. I never saw the
whole script.
"Most of my scenes are with Yoda [voiced by Frank Oz]. He's a younger Yoda, because
the whole thing is way back in the beginning [of the Jedi Knight Saga]. Darth Vader's 8
years old, so Yoda's got to be younger, though he's already like 4000 years old.
"So maybe he's 3900 years old, but he still looks the same and it's still Frank Oz.
"The only thing I can tell you is that I got to utter those famous words, 'May the
Force be with you'. That was cool."
That's the end of her report!
Latest News for 11/03/97
SAM JACKSON IN SCENES WITH YODA
Kivlehan, 12:00 AM EST
From page 28 of the Arts and Leisure section of the Sunday, November 2, New York Times:
Just after Mr. Jackson finished working on "Jackie Brown", but before he completed work on Barry Levinson's sci-fi thriller "Sphere," which opens in February, with Dustin Hoffman and Sharon Stone, Mr. Jackson found himself standing in a cavernous Northern California sound stage doing three days of work on the as-yet-unnamed prequel to "Star Wars." Mr. Jackson refused to divulge any details of the top-secret plot, but he did share a thought that ran through his mind as he was trading lines with Luke Skywalker's trembly-voiced mentor.
"This has been the kind of year where I've worked with Dustin Hoffman and Robert DeNiro," Mr. Jackson pointed out, "and all of a sudden I'm standing on a set doing scenes with Yoda. I said to myself 'I've arrived'."
Jackson makes it pretty clear that he is involved in scenes with Yoda. This report matches up with information that our source "Brantol" told us. Brantol said Jackson was playing Jedi Master Mace Windu, a member of the Council of Jedi Masters on Coruscant, whose purpose is to try those who betray the Jedi. Matching information from Mode leads us to believe this is the same Council that wears Vader-esque head gear.
Does that mean Yoda will have a little Vader cap? No comment!
According to Jeremy Youngs, a reader of this site, the Chattanooga Free Press interviewed Sam Jackson about an "upcoming movie." Jeremy was kind enough to send us the following excerpt from the interview:
"Sam will be seen in the upcoming Star Wars prequel, but he wouldn't tell what he does in the film, but felt it was "pretty cool!...I got to say the famous lines 'May the Force be with you.'"
We couldn't find the interview on The Chattanooga Free Press On-Line, but that doesn't mean it never happened. Although we cannot confirm this story, there have been rumors that Jackson's Jedi will be the first character to utter that famous phrase in the saga (counting Episodes IV, V, and VI as after, of course). Thanks go to Jeremy Youngs for his contribution.
10/1/97 - Rob Pouria sent us this note:
In the October Premiere Magazine, they asked a bunch of people "What will Hollywood be like in 10 years?" This was Sam Jackson's response --
"I'm about to do tihs "Star Wars" project, and I was talking to George Lucas. He was saying, 'I know you're, like, a really good actor, but in this film you'll probably be going, "Look out! Run Duck! -- da, da, da," and all the big speeches are going to be done by the thirteen computer-generated actors.' So maybe that's how Hollywood's going to control the escalating salaries. Just put their computer-generated stars to sleep at night and boot them up in the morning."
9/7/97 - This comes from Steve Almond. This is part of an article that was in his local paper, The London Free Press:
"And I just finished my three days on Star Wars, which is kinda cool," said Jackson of the George Lucas prequel now in production. Amazing stuff, Jackson agreed. "One day I'm standing across from Dustin Hoffman doing this great scene and I'm thinking, like, 'Aw my gawd, I'm working with Dustin Hoffman.' And the next week I'm working with Robert De Niro. "And it's like this Tuesday and it's Yoda. There you have it. I can retire now."
Steve noted the following: "Is he in a scene with Yoda, or was he just speaking figuratively? Who knows."
9/3/97 - From the Prequel Watch chat this past weekend:
Q: Which part is Samuel l. Jackson playing?
Garindan: I here he's to be in a "fight scene" in Ep1, possibly a Cantina-type scene
9/3/97 - Here's a tip if you ever meet Samuel Jackson in person. It comes from the New York AP article.
JACKSON HANDLES FAME WITH HUMOR
Go ahead. Ask Samuel L. Jackson for am autograph. Just don't forget the magic word. "I make 'em say 'please'," Jackson says. "That's one of my little quirks, you know." Jackson, who in the last six years has risen from a well-respected but little-known cameo actor to a highly visible cinematic success with such hits as JUNGLE FEVER, PULP FICTION, and A TIME TO KILL, is entitled to a few quirks. After all, he has spent more than 25 years fine-tuning the craft he first fell in love with on the stage at Morehouse College in Atlanta in the early 1970's. Now that he's made a name for himself, one would think the 6-foot-3 star would be tempted to ride in style. Instead, he rides the subway. "People go, 'You know, you look like that Sam Jackson guy,' and I'll go, 'Really?'" Jackson explains, a wide smile creeping across his face and his right eyebrow lifting mischievously. "But I can't be him because I'm on the subway, and Sam Jackson doesn't ride the subway, he rides around in limos. He's FAY-muss." Jackson admits to occasionally throwing around his weight, but he says he limits it to the little things, like scoring a free pass to a movie or a table at his favorite restaurant. Whatever the case, he is more likely to poke fun than congratulate himself for it.
7/29/97 - This comes from Rob Pouria - On 7/28/97, Samuel Jackson was on The Scott and Todd Big Show in New York promoting his new film 187. He said a little about the new films:
Scott Shannon - "You are doing Star Wars again, aren't you?"
Sam Jackson - "Uh, yeah I am."
Scott Shannon - "You're doin' one of those movies?"
Sam Jackson - "Yep, I'm going over to London sometime in the middle of
August, yeah."
So, not much, but we learn he's filming in August. Thanks Rob!
7/26/97 - We got reports on Samuel Jackson's Letterman appearance from Brent Lynch, Brian Linder, and the following report from Terrence A. Daniels:
"I'm watching David Letterman right now 12:06 am in Boston, and Samuel L. Jackson is the guest. He just confirmed that he is going over to London to be in Episode 1 after he finishes filming for Quentin Tarantino's latest film. Letterman asked him if he knew who he was playing, and he responded: "I have no idea. I asked George, and he said, 'well, you'll probably be going, look out, run, duck, go that way', so I may end up anywhere between Lando Calrissian's grandfather and a wookie..."
6/10/97 - And what's the deal with Samuel Jackson? First, he says in an interview that he is a big Star Wars fan at that he'd love to be in the films. Next thing you know, everyone is saying that he WILL be in the films. Take, for example, this 6/13/97 issue of Entertainment Weekly:
"* Though he's juggling other movies right now for Quentin Tarantino (Jackie Brown) and Barry Levinson (Sphere), Samuel L. Jackson will climb aboard in a brief role yet to be determined. "
So will we hear any confirmation, or is this just another rumor that has taken off and turned itself into fact? I (Scott) think he's a great actor and would like to see him in the films. We shall soon see if he will be!
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