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 “I’m charming. Obviously, I’m handsome.” BILLY DEE WILLIAMS explains to JODY MACGREGOR what he has in common with his character in the Star Wars movies: LANDO CALRISSIAN.
Lando was the smooth-talking, cool-as-Shaft scoundrel with the bitchin’ cape who showed up in The Empire Strikes Back to hit on Princess Leia, do some manly bonding with Han Solo, then sell both of them out to Darth Vader. Although Lando got to redeem himself after that, Williams caught some flak at the time for his character’s actions.
“When I used to pick my daughter up from school when she was in elementary school, kids would say, ‘You betrayed Han Solo!’” More than once he found himself trying to explain Lando’s situation and point of view in the schoolyard. In spite of that betrayal, the character has an enduring appeal among fans that Williams puts down to his charm, unpredictability and vulnerability. “Vulnerability is always important in a character, even one who might be perceived as a little dubious.” Although Williams did take home some t-shirts and caps with the original title of the third movie, Revenge Of The Jedi, that are probably worth a fortune on eBay nowadays, what I really want to know is, did he get to keep that kick-ass cape? “No, no, no. People always ask me that. I was lucky to get an Ewok head. I had to talk George Lucas into giving me that head.” On the subject of George Lucas, and diplomatically avoiding any mention of Revenge Of The Sith, would Williams be interested in working with him again? “Yeah, anytime I can work with George Lucas is something I look forward to,” he says. He also replies that he’d be happy to have a cameo in the forthcoming Star Wars TV show rumoured to be filling the gap between the prequels and the original movies. Despite having 50 years of experience in showbiz, appearing in movies from Brian’s Song (a movie even the manliest of men is allowed to cry at) to Batman (he played Harvey Dent, and was disappointed not to be asked to play the character again when he became Two-Face in Batman Forever), it’s still Star Wars that he’s remembered for. Guest-starring in an episode of Scrubs last year, he played himself and was greeted with an excited squeal of “Lando Calrissian!” from Turk. It’s that memory and the nostalgia that goes with it that makes him hot property at sci-fi conventions everywhere, and is bringing him to Australia for the Supanova pop culture expo. Williams still enjoys the experience after all these years. “I’m always willing to do them. It gives me a chance to travel all over the world.” One other thing Williams is remembered for is his role as the spokesman for Colt 45 beer, appearing in ads throughout the early ‘80s claiming that it ‘works every time’. Never having tried the stuff, I have to ask him what it tastes like. “It’s a good beer,” he says, although later he qualifies that. “If you have real discriminating taste you might have some issues with it.” Billy Dee Williams will be appearing at Supanova, April 14–15 at the RNA Showgrounds, alongside Karl Urban (Lord Of The Rings), Aaron Douglas (Battlestar Galactica), and many more sci-fi/fantasy actors.
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