Forty years after the release of Star Wars: A New Hope, it’s hard to imagine anyone other than Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford playing the space-gallivanting trio of Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and Han Solo. But when director George Lucas was casting the movie, there were a number of other notable names up for the now-iconic roles.

As the galaxy far, far away franchise has expanded, more and more high-profile actors have pursued the opportunity to make an appearance in the saga. Of course, some of these audition stories may just be rumors or one person’s interpretation of what happened, but they still provide an interesting backdrop to the worldwide phenomenon that is Star Wars.

Here are 20 stars you may have never known were almost cast in the series.

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Write to Megan McCluskey at megan.mccluskey@time.com.

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