Mark Hamill Eight Is Enough: Why David Bradford Almost Became Luke Skywalker

You probably know him as the farm boy who saved the galaxy. Or maybe the gravelly voice behind the most iconic Joker in history. But there’s a weird, alternate-universe version of 1977 where Mark Hamill isn't a movie star. In that reality, he’s just David Bradford, the eldest son in a crowded Sacramento household.

It’s one of those Hollywood "what ifs" that feels almost impossible today.

Before Star Wars blew the doors off the cinematic world in May 1977, Mark Hamill was a working actor. He was doing the rounds on TV—guest spots on The Partridge Family, some voice work, the usual 70s grind. Then he landed the role of David in the pilot for a new ABC dramedy called Eight Is Enough.

He filmed the pilot. He was under contract. He was ready to be a TV dad’s oldest kid for the next five years.

The Pilot Most People Haven’t Seen

If you track down the original pilot episode of Eight Is Enough (it’s a bit of a holy grail for TV nerds), you’ll see a very different vibe. Hamill played David Bradford as a bit of a rebel. In that first episode, David is actually moving out of the house because he’s tired of the chaos of seven siblings.

Honestly? He’s great in it. He’s got that same earnest, slightly frustrated energy he brought to early Luke Skywalker.

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But there was a problem. A big, galaxy-sized problem. While he was waiting for the show to get picked up, Hamill had also filmed a little "space opera" for George Lucas.

The Crash That Changed Everything

Here is where things get messy and a little tragic. In January 1977, months before Star Wars hit theaters, Hamill was involved in a serious car accident. He was driving his BMW on a freeway, missed his off-ramp, and tried to overcorrect. The car flipped.

He survived, but the facial injuries were significant. We're talking seven hours of surgery to repair a fractured nose and cheekbone.

At the same time, ABC decided to greenlight Eight Is Enough as a full series.

Lorimar Productions, the company behind the show, had a choice. They had a star who was under a five-year contract but was currently recovering from major facial trauma and—let's be real—desperately wanted out so he could focus on the film career everyone sensed was about to explode.

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Hamill’s team pushed for his release. Lorimar eventually agreed. They recast the role of David with Grant Goodeve, and the rest is history.

What Most People Get Wrong About the Recast

There’s a common myth that Hamill was fired because of his face. That’s not really it.

The truth is more about timing and contracts. Hamill knew Star Wars was going to be something special, even if he didn't know it would change the world. He didn't want to be tied to a network sitcom for half a decade when he had a potential trilogy on the horizon. The accident provided the "out" that both sides needed to part ways without a massive legal headache.

Grant Goodeve took over, and honestly, he fit the "wholesome big brother" vibe of the show perfectly. He even sang the theme song. Could you imagine Luke Skywalker singing the Eight Is Enough theme every week? It would have been... weird.

A Few Fun Facts from the Bradford House:

• The Mom Change: Diana Hyland played the mother, Joan Bradford, in the pilot and the first few episodes, but she tragically passed away from breast cancer shortly after the show started.
• The Lucas Connection: Susan Richardson, who played Susan Bradford, was also a George Lucas veteran—she was in American Graffiti.
• Recast City: It wasn't just David. Tommy and Nancy Bradford were also played by different actors in the pilot (Chris English and Kimberly Beck) before Willie Aames and Dianne Kay took over.

Why It Still Matters Today

It’s easy to look back and say, "Of course he chose Star Wars." But in 1977, TV was a steady paycheck. Movies were a gamble. If Star Wars had flopped—and many people, including Lucas himself, thought it might—Hamill would have walked away from a hit TV show for a B-movie disaster.

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Instead, he became a legend.

The scars from that January accident are actually visible if you look closely at The Empire Strikes Back. Some fans think the Wampa attack at the beginning of the movie was written specifically to explain his "new" face. While the timeline is a bit debatable—the accident happened years before they filmed Empire—the producers definitely used the in-universe injury to account for the fact that their lead actor looked a little more "grown up" and weathered.

Actionable Insights for TV and Film Buffs

If you're a fan of TV history or Mark Hamill’s career, here is how you can dig deeper into this specific era:

1. Watch the Pilot: You can occasionally find the Eight Is Enough pilot on DVD collections or specialty streaming sites. Comparing Hamill’s David to Grant Goodeve’s David is a masterclass in how different actors change the "temperature" of a show.
2. Check the Timeline: Next time you watch the original Star Wars, look at the landspeeder pickup shots. Those were filmed after the accident using a double because Hamill was still recovering.
3. Appreciate the Work: Don't just stick to the Jedi stuff. Hamill's guest spots on shows like The Streets of San Francisco from this same era show just how hard he was working to make it before the Force found him.

It’s wild to think that a missed freeway exit and a contract dispute are the only reasons we didn't get five seasons of David Bradford, architect, instead of Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight. Sometimes the universe has a funny way of putting people exactly where they need to be.