Mark Hamill slipped into a surprise cameo on Mike Flanagan’s new “Carrie” series with one condition: keep it quiet.
The “Star Wars” icon, 75, appears as a fortune teller in episode six of the Amazon Prime Video adaptation, sporting a mustache, beard and one half-closed eye that renders him nearly unrecognizable. Creator Mike Flanagan, 48, revealed in an interview published Wednesday that Hamill jumped at the brief gig.
“He was so excited to just come out for half a day,” Flanagan told the outlet.
“His whole thing was just like, ‘Just don’t tell anyone I’m doing that,'” the showrunner continued. “He just wanted to be part of it.”
Flanagan has developed something of a repertory company with the veteran actor. The pair previously collaborated on the 2023 horror mini-series “The Fall of the House of Usher,” where Hamill played Arthur Pym, and reunited for the 2024 sci-fi film “Life of Chuck.” Their latest team-up came with Hamill’s covert request for total secrecy around his involvement.
The showrunner’s enthusiasm for the performance was unmistakable. Flanagan described watching Hamill work as “so fun,” marveling at how the legend spent his time “just chewing that set and creating this really fun character.”
“I just love the man,” Flanagan said. “They say never meet your heroes in this business, and I think he’s the exception to that in so many ways.”
Flanagan’s “Carrie” reimagines Stephen King’s 1974 horror novel for television, with Summer Howell stepping into the role of the telekinetic teenager. The series follows Carrie as she grapples with her father’s death, her controlling mother’s grip, fallout from a high school bullying scandal, and the emergence of her destructive powers. The cast also includes Siena Agudong, Alison Thornton, Joel Oulette, Josie Totah and Arthur Conti.
While Brian De Palma’s 1976 film remains the most famous screen version, Flanagan emphasized that his take breaks sharply from prior interpretations. “This isn’t the Carrie White we’ve seen before,” he said. “It’s not the prom we’ve seen before,” He added that the project moved forward with “King’s enthusiastic support.”
The fortune teller role marks Hamill’s latest venture into the horror space under Flanagan’s direction, following his turn as the calculating Arthur Pym in “The Fall of the House of Usher.” That Netflix mini-series, an Edgar Allan Poe-inspired Gothic tale, gave Hamill one of his most substantial dramatic roles in recent years.
Hamill’s career has long mixed blockbuster fame with eclectic, often voice-driven work across animation and video games. His willingness to disappear into a small, physically transformed part for just half a day’s shooting suggests a performer still eager to surprise audiences rather than coast on recognition.
The eight-episode “Carrie” series is now streaming its full season on Amazon Prime Video.