Even though he didn’t show up until The Empire Strikes Back, it’s hard to imagine the core cast of the original trilogy without Lando Calrissian. Brought to life by the ever-cool Billy Dee Williams, Lando is as much a part of that original trilogy as Luke, Han or Leia.
Here are five little-known facts about the man who breathed life into the original owner of the Millennium Falcon.
1. The “Dee” stands for December
While most middle names are represented by just an initial (Like Michael J. Fox), the Dee in Billy Dee Williams stands for his middle name, December. The actor was born William December Williams Jr. after his father, William December Williams Sr. obviously. Billy Dee Williams also had a twin sister named Loretta.
2. He released an album
Almost 20 years before appearing in The Empire Strikes Back, Williams released an album titled Let’s Misbehave. Released in 1961, the album included Williams singing the title track, a cover of a Cole Porter song, along with several other popular swing numbers and show tunes. The album also featured the first-ever recording of the song “A Taste of Honey,” a song that was later covered by The Beatles. Though the album was successful in its time, Williams has never really ventured back into the world of music, saying “I have too much respect for singers to really think that I’m a singer.”
3. He played a small role in Batman in 1989
Audiences watching Batman in 1989 got to see Billy Dee Williams in a surprisingly small role, having only a few lines. While it might have seemed odd that a star of Williams’ level had such a small role, it makes more sense when you realize that the role was that of District Attorney, Harvey Dent. Fans of Batman can tell you that Harvey Dent eventually goes on to become the much more famous villain Two-Face. Williams took on the small role in the first Batman movie in order to be able to play the villain in a potential sequel later on down the line. Unfortunately, by the time Two-Face was depicted in the live-action Batman movies, the series had changed directors and the new director wanted to go in a different direction casting Tommy Lee Jones in the role. As a nod to this cinematic missed opportunity, years later The Lego Batman Movie cast Billy Dee Williams as the voice of Two-Face, a role he never got to fulfill in live-action.
4. He loves playing Lando and has portrayed the character in almost every appearance
Usually, when characters from big movies show up in video games or cartoons, they’re being portrayed by a voice actor doing an excellent impression of the actor that brought them to life in the original film. That isn’t the case for Lando. Billy Dee Williams is famously protective of the character and has portrayed him again and again, long after the release of Return of the Jedi. Almost every video game or animated series appearance of Lando is voiced by Billy Dee Williams himself. He even reprised the role for multiple Robot Chicken sketches, and a Funny Or Die political campaign parody. Donald Glover taking over the role in 2018 is one of the very rare times that Lando was portrayed by someone other than Billy Dee Williams.
5. He is an accomplished painter
We might all think of Billy Dee Williams as an actor, but according to Williams, he considers himself first and foremost to be a painter. In high school, he focused on visual arts, and he went to college to focus on the classical principles of painting. In fact, Williams turned to acting to help pay for painting supplies and canvas. His paintings have been put on display in the National Air and Space Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, and the African-American Museum of Art, Culture and History in New Orleans, as well as several other places. In total, Billy Dee Williams has completed over 300 paintings and has said that he sees his painting as his legacy.
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