Hamill´s accident and the Wampa

Hey if everybody knows about this I apologize and ask you to share your knowledge with me.


From the first time i saw ESB, the whole "Wampa" (snow creature) seemed very odd to me, like disconnected and unnecesary.

Then I learned that Mark Hamill had this terrible car accident that had him terribly disfigured (you can tell the huge difference in his face from ANH to ESB and ROTJ).

Do you think the whole Wampa sequence was invented to justify injuries to Luke's face and his change of appearance ? Is it just a coincidence?

What is your knowledge or opinion?

 

I dont remember hearing when Mark Hamill had his accident..it may have had something to do with it but scene is actually set up to get him to go Degobah and meet Yoda so maybe not...

 

Yes, there are the two schools of thought about this and I haven't heard anything to totally confirm either.

Hamill was injured in a car crash, but some think that the Wampa scenes were put in to explain away facial scars, while other think it was always due to happen to lead to Luke having a vision from Obi-Wan.

I don't know which is true, but I tend to go with the former.

 

I've seen it argued both ways so many times.

There's even conflicting reports from Hamill himself, about the extent of his injuries.

Some people say he hurt his arm, others say he went throught the windshield. ?

It's a mess.

 

Yes there have been many rumors about script rewrites cause of Hamil's injuries but nothing has ever been confirmed...
There are even reports that he had the auto accident way before ESB in 1976.

 

"Mark Hamill was involved in a minor car accident before shooting began [for ESB], and many rumours exist regarding facial injuries and script rewrites. The magazine "Starlog" (#40) contains an interview with Hamill where he attempts to dispel the rumours."
- http://us.imdb.com/Trivia?0080684


im sorry i couldnt find further information on this, but the official "Starlog" website is located at http://www.starlog.com/store/index.php you might be able to find the article there, but i'm not sure as i have not had ample time to search for it

 

What did Mark Hamill look like in the Holiday Special?

 

But the difference from ANH to ESB is OBVIOUS, he almost looks like a totally different person. He was involved in a major CAR accident that involved recostructive surgery to the face. I read it in a magazine but I can´t find it now...

But come on, isn´t it obvious how he changes dramatically in a couple of years ?

 

Hey I found this confirmation of reconstructive surgery prior to ESB, this is from the OFFICIAL SITE, so this dispute will be settled:

starwars.com/bio/markhamill.html

Now we can discuss if they introduced the Wampa to explain away his scars...

 

Hamill's been seperately quoted in the past as saying both "I wasn't badly injured at all" and "My nose was pushed off my face", so I don't know how we're ever gonna be sure for certain. I guess the guy really bashed his head hard in the accident, that's for sure, since he doesn't seem certain about his exact injuries afterwards and can't recall anything about it between pitching off the road and waking up in hospital.

 

. Ain't that the truth!?!

 

Maybe they filmed the SW Holiday Special during this time...that would explain a lot...

 

Yeah, I heard he "lost face" after making that turkey!

 

Here's a quote from his bio on the Star Wars web site:


A car accident in early 1977 did extensive damage to Hamill's face, and the actor underwent reconstructive surgery prior to filming The Empire Strikes Back. He has nevertheless had a successful acting career; he went on to star in such films as Corvette Summer (1978), The Big Red One (1980), and The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia (1981). After the release of Return of the Jedi (1983), he turned his attention to theater. He starred in a number of plays, among them "Amadeus" and "The Elephant Man," before focusing on voice work. He has since lent his talents to countless animated productions, notably "Batman: The Animated Series," and Star Wars fans were particularly delighted with his recent guest appearance on "The Simpsons."


So to answer your question, yes he did have a serious car accident and the scenes were written in for that reason.

 

The link to the website has already been posted.

"So to answer your question, yes he did have a serious car accident and the scenes were written in for that reason."

LINK:In between Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back, Mark was involved in an auto accident, and required reconstructive surgery. The early scenes in Empire with the Wampa monster were devised to explain the slightly different appearance of Mark's face.

LINK:it's common knowledge that the car wreck happened just before shooting was to begin on Empire, right?
Wrong, buster.
First, that Corvette thing was just a movie, Corvette Summer, in which Hamill co-starred with Annie Potts.
Second, this scene was filmed two years after Hamill's accident and successful plastic surgery. In a 1999 interview, Hamill related, "I broke my nose, but it didn't affect the filming schedule.

LINK:1977, 11 January:
Mark Hamill is involved in a high-speed auto accident in California. He goes through extensive reconstructive surgery on his nose and is unable to participate in Tatooine re-shoots in the California desert.

LINK:Extra credit: Between filming his first Star Wars movie and The Empire Strikes Back , Hamill was in an accident that left his upper lip scarred. The filmmakers accounted for the scar in the script for the sequel.

LINK:4) How did Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford get their scars?
Answer: Mark Hamill was in a car accident after "A New Hope" was released. He went through the windshield of his BMW in California.

LINK Mark Hamill suffered serious facial injuries in a car accident toward the end of the Star Wars shoot. His injuries required extensive reconstructive surgery. Lucas used a body double in some of the Mos Eisley speeder scenes.
* Addition: That is why the beginning scene in Empire Strikes Back, when he gets malled by that monster, was added to explain his facial injuries. (Source: book) - MarsGRL

LINK Mark Hamill was involved in a minor car accident before shooting began, and many rumours exist regarding facial injuries and script rewrites. The magazine "Starlog" (#40) contains an interview with Hamill where he attempts to dispel the rumours.

From Mark Hamill himself (the 1999 interview in Starlog #40)
LINK:"A lot of people speculated that the scene where the Wampa attacked me in the beginning of Empire was written in because of the accident. I even asked George about it myself. He said 'No,' that Luke was always captured by the Wampa."

LINK:while Hamill was undergoing reconstructive surgeries to repair his crushed face, he met his future wife - dental hygienist, Marilou York. When Hamill appeared at the Star Wars premiere, the only sign of his accident was a bandage on his nose.

I thought this was funny.

LINK:Actually, it was a motorcycle accident between A New Hope and Empire. That's the reason that he gets whocked in the face at the beginning of Empire by the big snow-beastie, because they could cover the scars with makeup, but not the massive reconstructive surgery, so they got themselves a storyline to cover the restructuring.

So what's the point of all this? That the rumors surrounding Hamill's accident go every which way but loose. While the SW website is canon on the films, I'm going to take Hamill's word over the website's "facts".

 

Wow Trojan that's quite a list. You can also add to it the story they did on him on E!'s True Hollywood Story for Eight is Enough. SO what's the true story? Did he have a serious accident or not

 

He did have an accident, and there was some damage. Beyond that, I couldn't say for sure.

 

He appeared on the cover of PEOPLE magazine shortly after filming ESB, he did state that they wrote that into the movie. I will get the mag, from my collection, and quote....in a couple of days...

ok, the reason why I know, last night....while I was packing to move into our new house..I came across my packed away SW collectibles...I read the article after I played with my ORIGIONAL Millenium Falcon.... .

It was late, my kids and husband were asleep, no one knew......

 

" He appeared on the cover of PEOPLE magazine shortly after filming ESB, he did state that they wrote that into the movie."

If so, it again proves my point that there are far too many conflicting reports to really say anything definitive.

 

Great post, Trojan_Sock.
Helps to show just how varied the reports are. Everything short of "Yeah, I actually died in the crash but came back to life" is covered

 

.

"I will keep people from dying."

 

I saw footage of his car crash on German
TV in 1999. I have it on video tape.

I`m really glad he survived it. I think
he had this accident somewhere in Hollywood.

 

Was there a man-sized whole in the front windshield?

 

Regardless of what Hamill says, it it pretty clear his face changed a lot form episodes IV to V, he clearly has a different shape of his upper lift.

Now, let me ask you again? Do you think the wampa sequence was used to explain away his scars?

I vote yes.