Frasier Star Kelsey Grammer Auditioned To Play A Major Star Wars Character

Kelsey Grammer certainly has an impressive resume. Arguably, his biggest role is that of Dr. Frasier Crane, who originated on "Cheers" and has been going strong for nearly 40 years now with the latest revival of "Frasier" on Paramount+. From Sideshow Bob on "The Simpsons" to Beast in "X-Men: The Last Stand," there's something for everyone in his filmography. But his career could've gone on a completely different trajectory had he landed the part of Han Solo in "Star Wars."

Yes, before Harrison Ford took on the role he would grow to hate, Grammer was in contention, as he's expressed in various interviews over the years. One such instance came on a 2018 episode of "Conan" where he regaled the host and his audience with the story of his failed "Star Wars" audition. It begins with Grammer leaving Juilliard, but someone who taught there encouraged him to continue pursuing his passion and got him in touch with an agent. The agent points him in the direction of "some guy named Lucas" who was holding auditions for a new film.

Grammer went to meet with George Lucas, who told him the movie would've been "a fairy tale in space." According to Grammer, Lucas told him, "I think maybe you're a little old for the younger guy [Luke Skywalker] and maybe a little too young for the older guy [Obi-Wan Kenobi]. But you might make a pretty good, sort of like a John Wayne character." The last description is undoubtedly Han Solo, and while Grammer was game for the part, he never heard back.

Failed auditions are tales as old as time for anyone who's tried to make it big in Hollywood. Losing out on playing Han Solo in "Star Wars" certainly didn't hurt Kelsey Grammer's prospects, as he's done just fine for himself over the years. However, two years later, he was in San Diego when he went to see a movie. As the film started, he gradually began realizing this was what he auditioned for from "that weird guy," as he referred to George Lucas in his interview with Conan O'Brien. If Grammer had gotten the role, it's safe to say his career would be very different at this point, but Harrison Ford is so iconic in the part that it's hard to imagine anyone else but him as Han.

Luckily, Grammer started film and TV roles not too long after that, with everything culminating in 1984 when he started playing Dr. Frasier Crane on "Cheers." That would've been right after the original trilogy ended with 1983's "Star Wars: Episode VI — Return of the Jedi," but he may have been too big of a star at that point to take a sitcom role. And without Grammer's iconic turn in "Cheers," there's a chance he never would've gotten his own spin-off with "Frasier." The entire television landscape could've looked very different in the 1990s had George Lucas taken a chance on a young upstart. 

It also goes without saying that the persona Grammer typically exhibits in his performances is a far cry from what people think of as Han Solo. Characters like Sideshow Bob and Frasier are intelligent and crafty, whereas Han flies by the seat of his pants. It could've completely impacted the type of roles Grammer would've gotten.