It's 40 years since Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope came out. Do you remember when you saw it for the first time?

I can't remember, it's too far gone! I was just leaving boarding school - '77 was my last year of school, way back then. I don't think Star Wars was anywhere in my peripheral. I did eventually see it somewhere because I love going to the movies. I was a big fan of all the old westerns and Bruce Lee [laughs], I was brought up on those ones, coming out of the little town Rotorua in New Zealand.





It's also been 15 years since Stars Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones was released in 2002. How is it to look back on the experience of playing Jango Fett in that film?

Fifteen years ago... I remember when we were filming it in in 2000, and they were building the circles for the Olympic Games in Sydney. I could see them from my hotel room – the circles going up on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. I wasn't doing much [in the film], I was waiting for my helmet to come off! What an experience. I still go to conventions – I got a phone call today to see if I want to go to a convention in Perth, one in Sydney. Life goes on after that galaxy.





Do you remember your audition process for Jango Fett? Were you up against other people?

It was actually a process because I happened to be in Los Angeles and I was in the Bel Age Hotel. I used to pay for myself to go to LA and stay in a hotel, try and get a meeting or two, try to break in.

I was coming out of Shortland Street, armed with my doctor photos from the series [Morrison played Dr. Hone Ropata on the New Zealand soap]. I had a letter asking me to meet with the Star Wars casting lady, Robin Gurland. The funny thing was she was on the floor above me at the Bel Age Hotel! I looked up and thought, "she's right there, that's the floor above me!" So that was a buzz. It was just funny [the audition location] happened to be in the same hotel I was in. So I just went up one floor, sat down with her. She had a video camera on me and we had a nice chat – that's all it was. No lines, no dialogue – we were just having a chat about me, what I liked and where I was from, my family and she would've just shown George [Lucas] that. I'm sure [being in] Once Were Warriors helped, that one made some noise. [My character] was an abusive, raw husband who drank too much – that obviously helped.







How did it feel once you learned you'd won the role?

It was fantastic, great. It was a fantastic feeling. I had to brush up on my Fett homework though – I didn't know who the hell Jango Fett was! People were like, "Yeaaaah, you're Jango Fett!" And I was like, "who the hell's Jango Fett?!" [laughs]