Willow – the 1988 fantasy-adventure film directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Ron Howard (A Beautiful Mind) and written by Star Wars creator/auteur George Lucas – is the latest franchise to get a reboot.
Warwick Davis (who worked with Lucas in 1983’s Star Wars: Return of the Jedi) reprises his role as the titular character from the original film, Willow Ufgood, a Nelwyn farmer/sorcerer, who never imagined he would be playing Willow again.
“For years it’s been talked about, not by anyone official but by the fans,” explained Davis. “They’ve constantly pestered me, saying, ‘When are we going to see a sequel to that movie?’ And it’s a question I could never answer.”
Until he met Jonathan Kasdan (son of Oscar nominee Lawrence Kasdan, who co-wrote Jedi with Lucas) on the set of 2018’s Solo: A Star Wars Story (which Howard directed and Davis cameoed in). The younger Kasdan co-wrote Solo with his father. He spoke to Davis and Howard at length about Willow. Kasdan is the showrunner of the eight-episode miniseries of the same name, which debuted November 30, 2022 on Disney+.
“There was the impulse certainly between Ron and Warwick and myself to continue this story and return to this world. I came at it as a fan and they came at it both as the creators and they found a champion in me,” said Kasdan, who wrote the first episode. “There was something special in the opportunity to bring this character back to the screen.”
A Sexier Willow
According to Davis, the project’s development happened fairly quickly in Hollywood terms. It wasn’t stuck in development hell for untold years.
“Before I knew it, I was on set in Wales for the very first day of filming,” he said. “Once again looking just like Willow, but a slightly older, more mature, better-looking version. Sexier.”
New Blood
Kasdan, Davis, along with Willow cast members Erin Kellyman (Solo), Amar Chadha-Patel (Aladdin), Tony Revolori (the Tom Holland Spider-Man movies), Dempsey Bryk (The Silence), and Ruby Cruz (Mare of Easttown), recently spoke about the new Disney+ series during a virtual press conference.
Some of the younger cast members joked about how they weren’t even born when the original Willow debuted in 1988.
“I actually watched it with my parents and my brother… I love the film,” said Revolori. “I fell in love with the magic of the world and… when this opportunity came around, I was excited and honored.”
The 1988 Original
For the uninitiated, the original Willow occurred in a fantasy world. The evil sorceress Queen Bavmorda (Jean Marsh, Cleopatra) learns of a prophecy that a child with a special rune birthmark will be born and bring about her downfall. As a result, she imprisons all pregnant women. Once the baby, Elora Danan (Rebecca Bearman and twins Kate and Ruth Greenfield), is born, she’s smuggled out of Bavmorda’s dungeons and sent adrift up the river, where she’s eventually found by Willow.
Realizing his village is in danger, Willow goes on a quest to return Elora to her family, unaware of who she truly is. Along the way, he meets a roguish swordsman named Madmartigan (Val Kilmer, Top Gun) and runs afoul of Bavmorda’s forces led by her daughter Sorsha (Joanne Whalley, Daredevil). In the end, Sorsha betrays her mother and sides with Willow. When Bavmorda is vanquished, Willow leaves Elora with Sorsha and Madmartigan, then returns home.
“What really set Willow apart from the other fantasy offerings in the 1980s was that it could look at itself and laugh and not take itself seriously,” said Davis.
A Moderate Hit
Although nominated for two Oscars (for sound effects editing and visual effects) and grossing $137 million against a budget of $35 million, Willow was only a moderate hit and received mixed reviews from critics. It was not the blockbuster hit insiders predicted it to be, competing with the likes of other summer blockbusters released in 1988: Big, Rambo III, and Crocodile Dundee 2.
Lucas had plans to continue Willow as a film series, but since it wasn’t the next Star Wars, he developed The Chronicles of the Shadow War to follow the film’s events as a trilogy of novels: Shadow Moon, Shadow Dawn, and Shadow Sun. He hired Chris Claremont, best known for his 1976-91 stint as the writer of Marvel’s X-Men, to write it.
Getting George Lucas’ Blessing
Jonathan Kasdan talked about Lucas visiting the Solo set. Lucas was only supposed to be there briefly, and nobody was to say anything to him, much less make eye contact with him, according to Kasdan. However, Lucas stayed for six hours and answered everyone’s questions. The topic of Willow came up and Lucas gave Kasdan his blessing.
“In this moment when I found myself sitting next to this god of my childhood, (I said), ‘Y’know, the one thing I thought that Lucasfilm really had an opportunity to do was tell more Willow stories.’ And he kinda smiled wryly and said he couldn’t agree more and had been trying to make that happen for quite a while,” recalled Kasdan. “And he was a supporter and an advocate for (anything) we could get off the ground. That sort of faith and excitement and genuine boyish enthusiasm was really critical to feeling like this was something we could go off and do.”
The New Series
Willow occurs decades after Bavmorda’s defeat. Sorsha is now the queen. She and Madmartigan have gotten married and now have two children: twins Princess Kit (Cruz) and Prince Airk (Bryk). Sorsha intends to seal a marriage alliance between Kit and Prince Graydon (Revolori), but Kit doesn’t want to marry him. Meanwhile, lady’s man Airk is smitten with a kitchen maid named Dove (Emily Bamber, Nocturnal Animals).
The night before the wedding, the castle is attacked and Airk is kidnapped by the Bone Reavers, under orders from the enigmatic Withered Crone. Sorsha, who has visions of a new threat to the realm, orders Kit to assemble a small group, which includes Dove and Jade, to find Airk. They eventually encounter Willow, who reveals that Dove is actually Elora, whose true identity was kept hidden from even her.
Returning Favorites
In addition to Davis and Whalley, several people involved in the original film have returned, including Kevin Pollak (A Few Good Men) as Rool and Rick Overton (Mrs. Doubtfire) as Franjean. Marsh will reprise her role as Bavmorda in the fourth episode. Bearman and the Greenfield twins are slated to make cameo appearances.
Ron Howard is involved as an executive producer. Bob Dolman (who collaborated with Howard on 1992’s Far and Away), who wrote the screenplay for the original film based on Lucas’ story, returns to pen the second episode.
Where is Madmartigan?
Noticeably absent is Val Kilmer’s Madmartigan. In fact, Kilmer and Whalley met on the set of the original Willow, got married in 1988, had two kids, and then divorced in 1996. Kilmer has battled throat cancer in recent years, which has robbed him of his voice. Madmartigan’s absence is addressed in the series.
“(The) search for Madmartigan and the question of what has happened to him was right at the heart of the story we were telling. And we knew that it would be woven into this quest in a fundamental way, to see where he was, what had become of him, and what he’d given up,” explained Kasdan. “Madmartigan is still out there… I have had many conversations with everyone involved and our feeling is, he is out there to be found, should the day arrive… Warwick and I would both love to see him pick up that sword again.”
A Family Affair
Two of Davis’ four children are also involved in Willow. His son, Harrison, is his stunt double and photo double. His daughter, Annabelle, plays Willow’s daughter Mims, which isn’t a big stretch for her.
“It was wonderful to have (my children) as part of the series,” said Davis. “(Annabelle’s) a brilliant actor in her own right. We had a lot of fun playing the scenes together. Obviously, we’ve got that natural chemistry between us, which I think shines in the scenes we have together. I’m immensely proud of her work.”
He continued: “(Harrison’s) the most perfect stunt and photo double; he stands the same height as I do (3 foot 6) and looks just like me.” He added, tongue-in-cheek: “And he’s slightly disappointed now that he’s never going to be recognized for the work he did because as a stunt double and photo double, you should not be known – you should not even exist.”
The Weight of the Fan Expectations
Davis spoke about the challenges of filming Willow. When he first filmed the original Willow, he was 17. Today, he’s 52. Doing many of the physical feats required of him took a toll.
“(There was also) very unwieldy dialogue from Mr. Kasdan,” he joked.
The biggest challenge of all, however, was fan expectations.
“So, you’ve got that on your mind the whole time,” said Davis. “It can give you a lot of responsibility and bring a lot of weight to the whole thing. But, nonetheless, the experience was a fun one; it’s one I look back on with great affection and fondness.”
More Willow?
At this time, it is undecided if Willow will return for a second season. Kasdan would love to do more seasons.
“With every episode, you’re walking the line between making it familiar and satisfying what fans expect from the brand Willow and then trying to push it forward and tell a story that’s surprising and unexpected,” he said. “The greatest weapon we had with us was Warwick, who just lent the whole universe of Willow credibility, and the moment you see him on screen, you suddenly believe these six other foolish kids could somehow fit into that world and really inhabit it. And they did so beautifully and with such gusto and enthusiasm and authenticity that it was an amazing thing to watch all these things come together and become something that feels like a progression from the movie as much as a love letter to it.”
