Child's Play Star Mark Hamill Admits He Was Anxious and Intimidated to Voice Chucky

Actor Brad Dourif debuted as the murderous Charles Lee Ray in 1988's Child's Play, which required him to also voice the killer doll Chucky, as the villain used a voodoo ritual to transfer his spirit into the toy. The actor reprised the role in six sequels, with plans for Dourif to continue the role in a Child's Play TV series. Fans of the franchise were curious who would take over the role for the upcoming reboot, given how much pressure the new performer would be under, with fans mostly appeased with the confirmation of Mark Hamill as the new voice. Hamill recently teased just how intimidated he was to put his own spin of the iconic character.

"When I agreed to it, and it sunk in that they wanted me to do this, I felt intimidation like I hadn't felt since I did the Joker," Hamill shared during a press conference for the film, per Den of Geek. "I thought, when I auditioned for the Joker, there's no way they're going to cast this icon of virtue, Luke Skywalker, as the Joker. Forget about it. So I had no performance anxiety because I knew they couldn't hire me. It's only when they hired me that I really thought, 'Oh no, I can't do this because so many people have expectations of what he's supposed to sound like.'"

A major part of that intimidation came from the actor's admiration for Dourif and what he did with the role.

"I didn't feel that kind of intimidation until it sunk in that I was doing this," Hamill explained. "I love Brad. It's a great responsibility, so I'm anxious to see how people react because it's not the Chucky that we all know from before."

While the narrative of the original franchise explored the spirit of a murderer continuing his reign of terror in the body of a child's doll, the new film tweaks its approach, instead exploring a doll whose artificial intelligence malfunctions to a deadly degree.

"I got a letter from [director] Lars [Klevberg]," the actor clarified. "He already laid out his vision for the film, before I read it. And then they sent me this script and I thought the crucial element that was different from the original, which I love -- I'm a huge fan of Brad's interpretation -- Chucky has a different origin. So it's not the soul of a serial killer, but someone deliberately goes in and alters his operating system and takes off the safety measures."

The new Child's Play lands in theaters on June 21st.

Do you think Hamill will make for as good of a Chucky as Dourif? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars!