‘Star Wars’: C-3PO Actor Anthony Daniels Said Wearing the Costume For the First Time ‘Was Horrible’ — ‘I Had Completely Lost Connectivity With The World’

Anthony Daniels has played C-3PO in every Star Wars film that features the character. He’s always been vocal about how much he loves the character, but he hasn’t always loved the suit.

In fact, when he first tried it on, he couldn’t stand the feel of it. It was one of the most uncomfortable experiences of his life. 

The C-3PO costume required an entire team to complete

Because the C-3PO costume had such an intricate design, it needed a full team to get finished. Daniels 

“There’s no way 3PO can ever exist without a whole team, and that was right from the beginning,” Daniels told WIRED.

In total, at least six people were working on the C-3PO costume during production. They worked diligently to ensure Daniels’ costume had full functionality while maintaining some level of comfort.

“It was way more complicated a costume than anybody [had] thought. And so, on that first day, I think there was six people coming in from all angles to dress me up in it. And I really rely on, always relied on the kindness of the crew and the people who really care about making me as comfortable as was possible. Which wasn’t that much.”

Anthony Daniels hated the C-3PO costume the first time he wore it

Although the C-3PO costume looked enticing, it certainly didn’t feel that way. Daniels was shocked to realize how uncomfortable it was the first time he tried it on.

“I tried it on in the special effects studio at Elstree, and for the first time, I had that suit in its entirety around me,” Daniels said. “It was horrible. I had completely lost connectivity with my body, the world.”

Daniels was completely disoriented by the suit, barely able to see or walk. Every part of the suit was an exaggerated version of his real body parts.  

“I literally blundered around the studio because I couldn’t really see, apart from the eyes in the center. And I had no idea what my elbows were doing, which were way bigger than my elbows. My shoulders were bigger, my legs were kind of trapped.”

The C-3PO suit was completely redesigned  

After getting a glimpse of how Daniels operated in the C-3PO suit, the design team took it back to make some more tweaks. Not long after, they had a new suit f or Daniels to try on.

“After about 15 minutes, we took it off,” Daniels said. “What a relief, I never saw it again until a month later. There out in a tent, in the desert. And there were all the pieces. 17 pieces I think, laid out. And gradually, over a two hour period, they covered me in this gold.”

Everyone loved the new C-3PO suit

Out in the desert, the crew encased Daniels in the new, redesigned suit. Although it took over two hours to get every piece on Daniels, everyone loved the look when the task was finished. 

“So we had the whole 3PO look,” Daniels said. “And that first day, when I walked out into the desert, nobody had ever seen that shape, that figure before. And through the little pinhole eyes, I could scan all the people in front of me … and their reaction was extraordinary.”