The opportunity to appear in “Star Wars” may seem like a dream come true, but it was actually a tough decision for Oscar Isaac when initially approached by director J.J. Abrams.
“J.J. basically told me it was an intense, heroic, dramatic character and he hadn’t seen me do that,” Isaac told GQ, but he still hesitated. “I didn’t know if I could make it interesting. I didn’t know why me and not anybody else.”
Isaac revealed portraying Poe Dameron, a new human male lead with a strong commitment to the Resistance, was among his toughest jobs yet.
“It was hard. I actually felt the most green and insecure that I had in a long time,” he said. “I was like, ‘What am I doing here?’ There was not a lot of room to shade in the character. Every time I tried to do that, it would slow things down too much. J.J. would be like, ‘Get on with it, man!’ Just, ‘Louder! Faster!’ And then I would feel like I was doing that all the time. It felt weird and like I was not being creative. I would get nervous I wasn’t finding enough or I was missing an opportunity.”
But after much hesitation and hard work, Isaac is about to be seen all over the world in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” which hits Friday. He has starred in movies like “Ex Machina” and “A Most Violent Year,” and in TV shows like “The Wire” and “Show me a Hero,” but he knows “Star Wars” is a whole other level. He realizes that he might get recognized more after people see him on screen, but he also remained very humble about his imminent stardom.
“Obviously I think a lot of people are going to see ‘Star Wars,’” he says. “I imagine I might get recognized more. But right now it’s still sort of an abstract idea. And, to be honest, that’s something people tell you for a long time. Like, every other movie: ‘Here it comes! Here it comes! You better be ready!’”
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” also stars Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Peter Mayhew, Anthony Daniels, Adam Driver, Domhnall Gleeson Lupita Nyong’o, Gwendoline Christie and Kenny Baker.