By Jonathan Klotz
| Published
The lifelong friendship between George Lucas and Steven Spielberg has become a Hollywood legend at this point, from their famous Hawaiian vacations that gave the world Indiana Jones, to their dueling sci-fi films in 1977, but a cameo considered an urban legend for years is still surprising to fans of both directors. Two of the most important people in the history of Star Wars, George Lucas and Carrie Fisher, secretly appeared in Spielberg’s 1991 classic Hook as, of all things, a dancing couple who fly into the air through the magic of pixie dust. Lucas making an appearance is a fun nod to his history with Spielberg, but Fisher’s inclusion isn’t as random as it seems, after all, she helped write the Robin Williams Peter Pan instant classic.
George Lucas And Carrie Fisher In Hook
While Tinkerbell (Julia Roberts) is bringing Peter back to Neverland, she flies them over London Bridge when her pixie dust falls on a couple, who kiss and dance as they float into the air. The two Star Wars icons are impossible to make out, but for Hook’s 25th anniversary, The Wrap confirmed with Carrie Fisher herself that it was she and George. The unlikely, on-screen anyway, pairing only adds to the legend of the infamous Spielberg production.
The Star Wars duo wasn’t the only cameo in Hook, which includes Glenn Close as a pirate alongside David Crosby and Jimmy Buffet, while fellow musician Phil Collins is one of London’s finest. Gwyneth Paltrow is the young Wendy Darling, and Maggie Smith plays her as an older woman, and while Smith is royalty of the stage, the actual Queen of Jordan visited the film while it was in production. Spielberg was approaching the height of his powers in 1991, which is why he was able to get so many famous faces to appear in his children’s movie, but as good as he was (and is), he had some help behind the scenes from Fisher.
Hook’s Troubled Production
Carrie Fisher will forever be tied to her role as Leia in the Star Wars franchise, but away from the spotlight, she was one of Hollywood’s most sought-after script doctors, punching up films including Hook, The Wedding Singer, Scream 3, and The Last Action Hero. Often uncredited, her talent as a writer helped turn countless films into hits, and even George Lucas relied on her for the prequels, though it’s unlikely she’s the one who wrote about how Anakin hates sand. Fisher’s talent was in adding depth to the female characters and sneaking in jokes, but even she couldn’t perform miracles.
And it was a miracle that Hook turned out as well as it did, with the production making Star Wars: A New Hope look like a slick and well-oiled machine in comparison. Speilberg, not a fan of his own movie, would later go on record about how he fell behind schedule, and the budget, which ballooned to $80 million, kept expanding as the sets became more elaborate and the shooting days dragged on. Infamously, Julia Roberts was referred to as “Tinkerhell” by the crew, a moniker that the rising star didn’t deserve, as she happened to be a target for the tabloids at the time
One Of The Greatest Movies Of The 90s
Like Star Wars, Hook has become a generational masterpiece passed down from the Gen-Xers and Millennials who saw it in theaters to their own kids, as everyone goes through that phase where the Lost Boys skatepark hideout is the coolest thing ever. And of course, Rufio (Avatar The Last Airbender’s Dante Basco) is the coolest 90s kid of all time with his xtreme (90’s kids know that’s spelled right) attitude and of course, bangarang. Love it or hate it, Robin Williams as mid-life crisis Peter Pan is one of the star’s iconic roles, and though Spielberg may not like the movie, it’s one of the most nostalgic movies of the 90s, and the next time you watch it (because who doesn’t have an annual re-watch), keep an eye out for George Lucas and Carrie Fisher, together on-screen for the first time.
