Star Wars ’90s Flashback Footage Asks If the Franchise Is Cursed

While becoming an actor can offer an individual a number of exciting opportunities, being involved with certain productions can sometimes come with unexpected consequences. Shakespeare’s Macbeth, for example, is one of the longest-running superstitions in theater which dates back centuries, with actors feeling as though saying the play’s name aloud will cause bad luck. The 1982 horror film Poltergeist is said to have a curse surrounding it, as two of its lead performers died tragically young within six years of the film’s release. Back before the release of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Inside Edition released the above video citing that there was a Star Wars curse that Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher fell victim to.

Both at the time of the above segment’s release and currently, Inside Edition is less known for their hard-hitting journalism and is considered a more gossip-inspired program that offers viewers the more salacious angles of pop culture that they can exploit.

The segment points out that, shortly before the release of the original movie, Mark Hamill was in a car accident, requiring him to undergo facial surgery to reconstruct his face due to those injuries. It also notes that Fisher’s struggles with drugs and mental illness was somehow connected to the “bad luck” which befell those involved with the franchise, despite this conjecture glaringly being done in poor taste.

The outlet stretched the notion even further by pointing out that franchise creator George Lucas got a divorce and that actor Billy Dee Williams was accused of domestic abuse, while also attributing David Prowse’s voice as Darth Vader being replaced by that of James Earl Jones to this nonsensical “curse.”

This throwback montage might be far from objective, though it does offer a glimpse into the absurd ways in which every news program has attempted to cash in on the Star Wars craze in whatever capacity they could.

With 10 Star Wars films having now been released, there are distinct ways in which being involved with the series has helped launch the careers of their cast and crew. Sadly, not all of those involved with the saga have been as lucky, with multiple stars having previously spoken out about the mental toll the series has taken on them.

Jake Lloyd starred as Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, a role which many actors would be thrilled to have, only for the 10-year-old to earn the brunt of the film’s criticism, with the backlash inspiring the actor to retire from acting. Lloyd has specifically stated on numerous occasions that the decision was inspired by bullying he received from classmates for the role.

Also from The Phantom Menace, Ahmed Best revealed last year that he had considered taking his own life as a result of the harassment he had received for years in response to Jar Jar Binks, a character which he provided the motion-capture performance for.

What do you think of this “Star Wars Curse”? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!