Anthony Daniels facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Anthony Daniels
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Daniels in 2011
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| Born | 21 February 1946 |
| Alma mater | Rose Bruford College |
| Occupation | Actor, mime artist |
| Years active | 1974–present |
| Known for | C-3PO in Star Wars (1977–present) |
| Spouse(s) | Christine Savage |
Anthony Daniels (born 21 February 1946) is an English actor. He is most famous for playing the golden robot, C-3PO, in the Star Wars movies. He is the only actor who has been involved in all of the main Star Wars films shown in cinemas. He has also worked on many Star Wars spin-offs, like TV shows, video games, and radio stories.
Daniels also voiced Legolas in the animated movie The Lord of the Rings (1978). He has appeared on British TV in different shows, including playing a doctor in Prime Suspect.
Contents
Early Life and How He Became C-3PO
Anthony Daniels was born in Salisbury, England. His father worked for a plastics company. Anthony went to Giggleswick School and then studied law at university for two years. However, he decided to leave and try acting in local plays. He then went to Rose Bruford College to study acting.
After finishing college in 1974, Daniels worked for BBC Radio and the Royal National Theatre. While working in theatre, he was asked to meet director George Lucas, who was looking for actors for his new movie, Star Wars. Daniels first said no to the meeting, but his agent convinced him to go.
Daniels has shared that before he got the role in Star Wars, he had only seen one science fiction movie in a cinema: 2001: A Space Odyssey in 1968. He didn't like it at all and even left after ten minutes! After he was chosen to play C-3PO, George Lucas told him to watch 2001 again to study the voice of a robot named HAL 9000. Daniels later said that he now thinks 2001 is a brilliant movie.
He was part of the BBC's Radio Drama Company and can speak French very well.
His Amazing Career
Playing C-3PO in Star Wars
When Anthony Daniels first auditioned for C-3PO, he wasn't very interested. But then he saw a drawing of the golden robot by Ralph McQuarrie, and that made him excited about the role. He didn't see the finished C-3PO costume until he put it on for filming! He found it hard to say his lines while wearing the suit, but George Lucas told him they would record his voice again later. Daniels also played another robot, CZ-3, in a small part of the first movie.
After Star Wars became a huge hit, Daniels felt a bit sad because people didn't know he was the one inside the C-3PO suit. He thinks this was because the movie makers wanted people to believe the robots were real.
Anthony Daniels has played C-3PO in all the main Star Wars movies. He was the body and the voice of the golden robot. He has also voiced C-3PO for many other Star Wars projects. These include:
- Hosting shows like The Making of Star Wars.
- Appearing on famous TV shows like The Muppet Show and Sesame Street.
- Being in commercials for Star Wars toys and even a breakfast cereal!
- Voicing C-3PO in the Star Wars radio stories.
- Lending his voice to six animated TV series, such as Droids and The Clone Wars.
- Voicing C-3PO in Disney theme park rides like Star Tours.
- Voicing C-3PO in The Lego Movie (2014) and Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018).
Daniels also wrote the introduction for the collected scripts of the Return of the Jedi radio drama. He also wrote a comic book story for C-3PO and R2-D2 called The Protocol Offensive.
In Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Daniels only voiced C-3PO, while someone else moved the robot. But in Episode II: Attack of the Clones and Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, he was back inside the suit. He also did the voice for scenes where C-3PO was made by computers.
Daniels also had small human roles in two Star Wars movies. He played Lieutenant Dannl Faytonni in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith.
He returned as C-3PO in The Force Awakens (2015), The Last Jedi (2017), and The Rise of Skywalker (2019). For The Force Awakens, the director, J.J. Abrams, made a new C-3PO suit using 3D printing. This new suit was much more comfortable and allowed Daniels to move around more easily.
Daniels also appeared as C-3PO in the standalone Star Wars films, Rogue One (2016) and Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018), where he played a different character named Tak. He has also hosted the Star Wars: In Concert tour. More recently, Daniels made cameo appearances as C-3PO in the TV series Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka.
Anthony Daniels is the only actor to have been in all nine main Skywalker saga films, two standalone films, the Star Wars Holiday Special, the 2008 Clone Wars movie, and several Star Wars TV shows and specials.
In 2024, Daniels sold some items from his personal collection, including the headpiece he wore as C-3PO.
Other Acting Roles
Besides Star Wars, Anthony Daniels voiced Legolas in the animated movie The Lord of the Rings (1978). He also appeared in British TV dramas, including a regular role in Prime Suspect with Helen Mirren. He played a priest in the comedy horror film I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle (1990).
Other Work
Anthony Daniels was a visiting professor at Carnegie Mellon University's Entertainment Technology Center. He also wrote the introduction for the Ultimate Star Wars reference book (2015 and 2019 editions).
His autobiography, a book about his own life story, is called I Am C-3PO: The Inside Story. It was released in 2019.
Film and Television Appearances
Anthony Daniels has had many roles in movies and TV shows, especially as C-3PO.
- Movies: He has played C-3PO in all the main Star Wars films from 1977 to 2019. He also voiced C-3PO in animated movies like Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) and The Lego Movie (2014). He had other roles too, like Legolas in The Lord of the Rings (1978) and a priest in I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle (1990).
- Television: He has appeared as C-3PO in many Star Wars TV specials and animated series, including Droids, The Clone Wars, and Rebels. He also had roles in British dramas like Prime Suspect and The Bill.
Video Games
Anthony Daniels has voiced C-3PO in many Star Wars video games, including:
- Monopoly Star Wars (1997)
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Jedi Alliance (2008)
- Disney Infinity 3.0 (2015)
- Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2016)
- Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (2022)
Discography
- Christmas in the Stars: Star Wars Christmas Album (1980)
Images for kids
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Daniels in May 2011
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Daniels (right) with fellow Star Wars actor Warwick Davis (left) in 2007
See also
In Spanish: Anthony Daniels para niños
