50 Roles for 50 Actors: Dream casting the Star Wars saga

Dream casting the Star Wars saga: Sally Field as Uncle Owen

If Uncle Owen is the prototypical father figure, Aunt Beru is the prototypical mother figure. She’s kind and understanding, the conciliatory yin to her husband’s authoritative yang. While Owen would like Luke to stay on the farm, she wonders why he can’t follow his dreams and join up with the Rebel Alliance. We see even less of her than we do Uncle Owen, but what we saw, we liked.

Again, it’s a shame about the whole being burned to death thing, which I keep bringing up because it remains one of the more bracing images from the series. I wasn’t shocked by the sight of Princess Leia choking a giant slug monster to death while wearing a bikini in Return of the Jedi, but the sight of the charred skeletons of the hero’s parents still seems a bit much for this series to this day.

ANYWAY, Sally Field is a great match for this character in part because she has a long history of playing understanding mother figures, from Forrest Gump’s mom (pictured above) to Aunt May in the recent Spider-man reboot. Field has a kind face and a warm smile perfect for this role. Cast her and watch her spin her handful of lines into gold.

Next: Master Kenobi