Alec Guinness: The British theatre icon who accidentally made $95m on a movie he hated

Posted On May 13, 2025May 13, 2025

Perhaps one of the longest-reigning feuds is that between theatre and screen actors, with a somewhat comical war as performers from both camps debate who has the more challenging job. Countless actors have made their start in Broadway or off-Broadway productions, with the likes of Morgan Freeman, Denzel Washington and Meryl Streep starting out on the stage and making their way to stories created for the big screen.

Some dip their toes into both, with many viewing it as the ultimate test for any ‘serious’ actor and an act of ultimate commitment to their craft, with Nicole Kidman and Tom Holland starring in bold plays that surprised audiences and challenged their reputations as screen actors. Others are less keen on betraying their initial passion and moving to another art form, with many notable actors being so fiercely committed to their medium that they don’t dare to try anything else. But while it can be a challenge, there was one actor whose brief foray into the world of Hollywood proved to be very fruitful, despite his dislike of the project.

The Star Wars franchise is one of the most successful of all time, with the story of the faraway galaxy becoming synonymous with the birth of the blockbuster and one of the most pivotal productions from the New Hollywood movement. While directors like Martin Scorsese and Peter Bogdanovich were making gritty independent dramas like The Last Picture Show and Taxi Driver, George Lucas was completely engrossed with the idea of realising his sci-fi story and forever changing the landscape of filmmaking as we know it.

The director insisted on rights to merchandising and sequels, with the studio agreeing because they did not think that the film would be successful and, in fact, predicted that it would be a huge flop. Many of us don’t share this sentiment now, when reflecting on the success of Star Wars, but one cast member also shared this less-than-kind attitude towards the story and didn’t believe it was any good. 

Alec Guinness is one of the most influential actors to come from Great Britain, with decades of credits which include everything from Ealing Comedies like Kind Hearts and Coronets to Oliver Twist and stage plays. However, while he began his career on the stage, he later found his way into many classic films, surprising himself through his later involvement in the Star Wars series. 

George Lucas pitched the project to Guinness, with the actor being offered $150,000 to play the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi, sending him to a new level of fame that he wasn’t familiar with. Despite the legacy of the franchise, Guinness initially described the story as “fairy tale rubbish”, only agreeing to star in the film after they doubled his offer and added 2% of the backend grosses. But after the colossal reception of the film, this is something that undoubtedly worked in his favour, with the actor earning close to $100million in total, despite only having 20 minutes of screen time. 

While he wasn’t fond of the story, he later agreed to play a brief role in the second film, concluding, “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.” 

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