Al Pacino reveals he turned down Star Wars despite being offered “so much money”

Legendary actor Al Pacino admits that he passed on playing Han Solo in the original Star Wars trilogy, with Pacino revealing he said no because he didn’t “understand” the script at all.

The original Star Wars trilogy is still one of the most beloved trilogies of all time. In large part due to the amazing story, epic score and of course, the compelling characters that it includes.

While the Star Wars movies catapulted the careers of all actors involved, it served as a later shot at fame for Han Solo actor Harrison Ford.

Al Pacino was originally offered the role of Han Solo

However, there was a time when Ford may not have been Solo, with legendary actor Al Pacino revealing he was offered the part of Han Solo. 

“Well, I turned down ‘Star Wars.’ When I first came up, I was the new kid on the block, you know what happens when you first become famous. It’s like, ‘Give it to Al.’ They’d give me Queen Elizabeth to play,” Pacino said. “They gave me a script called ‘Star Wars.’ … They offered me so much money. I don’t understand it. I read it. … So I said I couldn’t do it. I gave Harrison Ford a career.”

Given that Harrison Ford then went on to do the likes of Indiana Jones and many more iconic roles, it’s bizarre to think that there was a time in which none of that could have happened if Pacino had yes to the Star Wars franchise.

Of course, since the original movies, the Star Wars cinematic universe has grown tremendously. With a whole set of TV shows of Disney+ as well as more movies on the way, there seems to be no limit to the depths of the Star Wars franchise.

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