‘I don’t get it’: Al Pacino recalls turning down ‘Star Wars’ role

WASHINGTON: Academy Award winner Al Pacino recalled turning down the ‘Star Wars’ role and shared why he was reluctant to be part of the popular franchise.

“I said, ‘I think I’m in the mood to make Harrison Ford a career’,” shared Pacino, recalling a visit with Francis Ford Coppola at his and George Lucas’ San Francisco-based production company headquarters for American Zoetrope, reported Deadline.

“They were in the late-’60s making this. They were real idealists coming into the ’70s with great films all over the globe,” he said, adding, “So, it was a wonderful place that I actually saw, I went to the building and everything before I did Godfather with them.”

Recalling the reason behind his reluctance, Pacino said, “So I loved their work, but I was doing a show on Broadway at the time, and they handed me this script, and I thought, I don’t understand. I thought I must be out of space myself. But I looked at this thing and I sent it to Charlie Loughton, my friend and mentor, actually. I said, ‘What do you make of this?’ He was pretty wise and he said, ‘I don’t get it, Al. I dunno. I don’t get it.’ I said, ‘Well, I don’t either; what are we going to do? They offered me a fortune, but I don’t know. No, I can’t play something if I don’t speak the language,” reported Deadline.

Dead Man’s Wire

Meanwhile, Al Pacino is set to star in the upcoming hostage thriller ‘Dead Man’s Wire,’ directed by Academy Award nominee Gus Van Sant. According to Deadline, the film is based on the true story of a gripping hostage situation that captivated the world in 1977. Austin Kolodney penned the screenplay for Dead Man’s Wire, and the film already boasts an impressive ensemble cast.

Bill Skarsgard, Dacre Montgomery, Myha’la, Cary Elwes, and Colman Domingo, all of whom were previously announced, will join Pacino in the thriller. The plot of ‘Dead Man’s Wire’ is based on the real-life events of February 8, 1977, when Anthony G “Tony” Kiritsis, a 44-year-old man, entered the office of Richard O. Hall, the president of Meridian Mortgage Company, and took him hostage.

Armed with a sawed-off 12-gauge shotgun wired to his own neck by a “dead man’s wire,” Tony demanded USD 5 million, immunity from charges, and a personal apology from the Hall family for cheating him out of money he believed was owed to him.

This high-stakes standoff will be brought to life on screen by Van Sant, known for his previous work on films such as ‘Good Will Hunting’ and ‘Milk’.This marks the first collaboration between Pacino and Van Sant. Pacino, who won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in ‘Scent of a Woman’, most recently appeared in ‘Knox Goes Away’. (ANI)