Star Wars Weekends: Stormtroopers, Amy Allen, & Ian McDiarmid
By Elaine Tveit
Star Wars Weekends began in full Force last Friday, and thanks to Inside the Magic, we have videos of this year’s first installment of the Force-ful Stars of the Saga celebrity talk show!
James Arnold Taylor, voice of Obi Wan Kenobi in The Clone Wars and the premiere episode of Star Wars Rebels, conducted interviews with actress Amy Allen (Aayla Secura from Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith) and “the Emperor of the universe” and first-time Star Wars Weekender himself, Ian McDiarmid.
First, the comical quartet of Stormtroopers that drew laughs from audiences at last year’s Star Wars Weekends was at it again as they opened the show. They get Han’s (Hans’s? Haan’s?) name pronunciation mixed up, refer to the talking candelabra, Lumiere, from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast as a “talking lightsaber,” and get in trouble with Darth Vader.
Next, James Arnold Taylor took the stage and introduced the Jedi and the Sith… I mean, Allen and McDiarmid, of course! The latter two related how they got their respective roles in the Star Wars saga and answered trivia and opinion questions about the franchise. At the end, all three actors closed the show by singing with Jedi Mickey. Check it out below!
What I loved about these interviews is how fun and lighthearted they were. Ian McDiarmid, especially, was so much fun to watch. What James Arnold Taylor said is true: Star Wars fans LOVE the Emperor! I really, REALLY hope he sticks around for the next few weekends when Yoda, disguised as Frank Oz (according to McDiarmid), will be a guest on the Stars of the Saga show. THAT would be a weekend long remembered!
I do feel a bit sorry for Amy Allen, though. Her character was a very minor one in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith and also spoke no lines, so her introduction video wasn’t as impressive as McDiarmid’s (but then, whose is?). Maybe next time they’ll add in scenes from Aayla’s appearance in The Clone Wars television series to give her more screen time.
As always, stay tuned to Dork Side of the Force for more updates as Star Wars Weekends continues into June!