This Oscar-winning Hollywood icon, known for his remarkable career, wasn’t particularly fond of the role that would ultimately define his legacy—a performance that earned him a staggering $95 million for just a few days of work.
Imagine receiving $95 million for a role with only 20 minutes of screen time. While most actors would jump at such an opportunity, this thespian, nearly 50 years ago, found the experience so uninspiring that he almost turned down the sequel, agreeing to return only out of loyalty to the director. This is the tale of a reluctant pop culture legend.
By the mid-1970s, British actor Alec Guinness had established himself as a cinematic powerhouse with acclaimed performances in films like Kind Hearts and Coronets, The Man in the White Suit, The Lavender Hill Mob, and Great Expectations. His portrayal in Bridge on the River Kwai earned him an Academy Award for Best Actor, followed by notable roles in Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago. Despite his prestige, when George Lucas approached him to play a wise mentor in a space adventure, Guinness demanded $300,000—double the original offer—and 2% of the film’s backend profits, with Lucas sweetening the deal by adding another 0.25%.
The film was Star Wars, and Guinness was cast as Obi-Wan Kenobi. Though his screen time in the movie was brief, the role turned into a global phenomenon and overshadowed the rest of his illustrious career. Thanks to his profit-sharing deal, Guinness earned an astonishing $95 million as the franchise raked in billions over the decades.
Alec Guinness and His Initial Disdain for Star Wars
As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, Guinness wasn’t impressed by Star Wars from the start. He viewed the script as “fairy tale rubbish” and only accepted the role for the lucrative paycheck. His private writings reveal that he found the project “dull rubbishy stuff” and had little interest in revisiting the character.
However, after the film’s monumental success, Guinness felt indebted to George Lucas and agreed to appear in The Empire Strikes Back to complete Obi-Wan’s story arc. Reflecting on his decision, he wrote in his diary: “I said yes to a day’s work on Star Wars II … It’s dull rubbishy stuff, but, seeing what I owe to George Lucas, I finally hadn’t had the heart to refuse.” Obi-Wan’s character met his demise in the sequel but continued to appear in subsequent Star Wars projects, portrayed by Ewan McGregor in the prequels and later reprised in the Disney+ series Kenobi.
Ironically, Guinness’s limited appearances earned him significantly more than McGregor’s extended involvement in the franchise, highlighting the actor’s enduring legacy as the face of an iconic character he never fully embraced.
