Star Wars actor Mark Hamill is lending one of his biggest assets – his voice – to Ukraine in support of its war effort.
Hamill, who has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine as it battles the Russian invasion, has become the voice of an app that alerts Ukrainians to incoming air raids.
“Attention. Air raid alert,” Hamill can be heard saying on the English-language version of the Air Alert app. “Proceed to the nearest shelter.”
When air raid sirens start in Ukraine, the app also warns when Russian missiles, bombs and drones may be incoming.
“Don’t be careless. Your overconfidence is your weakness,” Hamill says.
The 71-year-old star also tells users when “the air alert is over”. At the end, he finishes with: “May the Force be with you.”
Hamill is best known as Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars movies. But he’s also known for voicing The Joker in multiple Batman films and Fire Lord Ozai in Avatar: The Last Airbender.
He said he was happy to do what he could to aid the Ukraine war effort – and that the nation’s defence of its borders reminded him of the Star Wars saga.
“A fairy tale about good versus evil is resonant with what’s going on in Ukraine,” Hamill told the Associated Press.
“The Ukrainian people rallying to the cause and responding so heroically … It’s impossible not to be inspired by how they’ve weathered this storm.”
But he recognised his own work could also be a help.
“It does inspire people,” he said of his air raid voiceover.
“Everyone flashes back to being six years old again. And if the movie can help people get through hard times, so much the better.”
The app is already a hit with Ukrainians, who appreciate the actor giving them a morale boost with the iconic line.
“It’s a very cool phrase for this situation,” Olena Yeremina told the AP.
“I wouldn’t say that I feel like a Ukrainian Jedi, but sometimes this phrase reminds me to straighten my shoulders and keep working.”
Valentine Hrytsenko, the chief marketing officer at app developer Ajax Systems, said having Hamill lend his voice made a terrifying situation seem more manageable.
“It’s kind of a Ukrainian mentality to find some humour even in the bad situation or to try to be positive,” he said.
Hamill has been a long-standing supporter of Ukraine’s defence of the Russian invasion. He has also helped to raise money for reconnaissance drones to help out Ukrainian forces on the front lines.
Last year, he joined other celebrities in signing movie posters created by original artists to be raffled as part of United24’s ‘Army of Drones’ project. United24 was launched by President Volodymyr Zelensky last year to collect charitable donations for Ukraine.
“Here I sit in the comfort of my own home when in Ukraine there are power outages and food shortages and people are really suffering,” Hamill said.
“It motivates me to do as much as I can.”
-with agencies
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