Anthony Daniels facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Anthony Daniels
Daniels in 2011
Born	(1946-02-21) 21 February 1946 (age 79) Salisbury, Wiltshire, England
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 is a famous English actor. He is best known for playing the golden robot, C-3PO, in the Star Wars movies. He is the only actor who has been in every Star Wars movie made for cinemas! He has also been part of many Star Wars spin-offs. These include TV shows, video games, and radio stories.

Anthony Daniels also voiced Legolas in the 1978 animated movie The Lord of the Rings. He has appeared in British TV shows too.

About Anthony Daniels' Early Life

Anthony Daniels was born in Salisbury, England, on February 21, 1946. His father worked for a plastics company. Anthony went to Giggleswick School. He studied law at university for two years. But he decided to leave and try acting instead.

He then went to Rose Bruford College to study acting. After finishing college in 1974, he worked for BBC Radio. He also worked at the National Theatre of Great Britain. While acting in the theatre, he was asked to meet director George Lucas. Lucas was looking for actors for his new movie, Star Wars.

At first, Daniels didn't want to go to the meeting. But his agent convinced him. Before Star Wars, Daniels had only seen one science fiction movie. It was 2001: A Space Odyssey. He didn't like it and left after ten minutes! After he got the role of C-3PO, George Lucas told him to watch 2001 again. Lucas wanted him to study the voice of the robot HAL 9000. Daniels later said he now thinks 2001 is a masterpiece. He also enjoys movies like Mad Max.

He was part of the BBC's Radio Drama Company. He can also speak French very well.

Anthony Daniels' Acting Career

Playing C-3PO in Star Wars

When Anthony Daniels first tried out for C-3PO, he wasn't very interested. But then he saw a drawing of the golden robot by Ralph McQuarrie. That's when he became excited about the role. He didn't see the full C-3PO costume until he put it on for filming. He found it hard to say his lines while wearing the suit. George Lucas told him not to worry, as they would record his voice again later.

Daniels also played another robot, CZ-3, in the first Star Wars movie. After the movie became a huge hit, Daniels felt sad. He wasn't getting much recognition. He thinks this was because Lucasfilm wanted people to believe the robots were real.

Daniels (right) with fellow Star Wars actor Warwick Davis (left) in 2007

Anthony Daniels has played C-3PO in all the main Star Wars movies. He provides both the body and voice for the golden robot. The only main Star Wars movie he didn't wear the suit in was Solo: A Star Wars Story. In that movie, he played a different character. Kenny Baker, who played R2-D2, said he and Daniels did not get along.

Daniels has also played C-3PO for many other projects. He hosted shows like The Making of Star Wars. He appeared on The Muppet Show and Sesame Street. He was in an anti-smoking ad and the Star Wars Holiday Special. He also did commercials for Star Wars toys and cereal.

He voiced C-3PO in the Star Wars radio stories. He is the only actor from the original movies to voice his character in all three radio parts. He has voiced C-3PO in six animated TV series. These include Droids and The Clone Wars. He also voiced C-3PO for the Christmas in the Stars album. He voiced the character for Disney theme park rides like Star Tours. He even narrated Star Wars audiobooks. Daniels also voiced C-3PO in The Lego Movie in 2014.

Daniels wrote the introduction for the Return of the Jedi radio drama scripts. He also wrote a comic book story for C-3PO and R2-D2. It was called The Protocol Offensive.

Daniels in May 2011

In Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Daniels only did the voice. A puppeteer controlled the robot on set. For Episode II: Attack of the Clones, Daniels tried to control the puppet himself. But the script changed, so he went back to wearing the suit. In this movie and Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, he also voiced the computer-generated C-3PO scenes.

Daniels also made small appearances as a human character. He played Lieutenant Dannl Faytonni. You can see him in a nightclub scene in Attack of the Clones. He also appears at the opera house in Revenge of the Sith.

Daniels returned as C-3PO in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015). The director, J. J. Abrams, first said Daniels would only do the voice. But then he changed his mind. He wanted Daniels to wear the suit too. A new C-3PO suit was made using 3D printing. This new suit was much more comfortable and allowed Daniels to move better. Daniels wasn't a fan of the droid's red arm in that movie. He also appeared as C-3PO in Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019).

Daniels had a cameo as C-3PO in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016). This was the first standalone Star Wars movie. He also played a character named Tak in Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018). He voiced C-3PO in Ralph Breaks the Internet and The Lego Movie.

He has also hosted the Star Wars: In Concert tour. Daniels made cameo appearances as C-3PO in the TV series Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka. Anthony Daniels is the only actor to be in all nine Skywalker saga films. He was also in two standalone films, the Star Wars Holiday Special, and several TV shows.

In March 2017, a Boeing 777 airplane was designed to look like C-3PO. Anthony Daniels was there for its unveiling. In 2024, Daniels sold some items from his collection. This included the headpiece he wore as C-3PO.

Daniels has attended many Star Wars Celebration events since 1999.

Other Acting Roles

Anthony Daniels voiced Legolas in the 1978 animated movie The Lord of the Rings. He has also appeared in British TV dramas. He had a regular role in Prime Suspect, which starred Helen Mirren. He also played a priest in the 1990 British comedy horror film I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle.

Other Work and Books

Daniels was a professor at Carnegie Mellon University's Entertainment Technology Center. He wrote the introduction for the Ultimate Star Wars reference book. His autobiography, I Am C-3PO: The Inside Story, was released in 2019.

Anthony Daniels' Filmography

Movies

Television Shows

Video Games

Images for kids

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  Daniels in 2011

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  Daniels (right) with fellow Star Wars actor Warwick Davis (left) in 2007

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  Daniels in May 2011

See also

In Spanish: Anthony Daniels para niños