Harrison Ford Thought J.J. Abrams Was ‘Kidding’ When He Was Asked Back for Rise of Skywalker

Harrison Ford is opening up about returning for last year’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

Ford’s iconic character of Han Solo appeared for one surprise scene in the ninth and final movie of the Skywalker saga, despite the fact that Solo had been killed by his son Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) in the seventh film, Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

During the scene, Solo shares a heartwarming and loving conversation with Ren, convincing him to turn away from the dark side. Ford recently told USA Today that the decision to have the fan favorite character return was made by director J.J. Abrams.

“When J.J. asked me to do it, I said, ‘Are you kidding? I’m dead!'” Ford, 77, said. “He said, ‘Sorta dead. You can do this.’ He hadn’t written anything at that time. But he said, ‘This is going to be great.’ So I said okay. If J.J. asked you do something, you’d probably do it too. He’s a very persuasive guy.”

“It was a useful addition to the story and the continuing development of Adam Driver’s character,” the actor continued. “And the chance to do another scene with Adam was great.”

“Last time, it didn’t turn out so well for me,” he added, referring to Ren killing Solo with a lightsaber in The Force Awakens. “But it worked for him.”

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During the interview, the actor also responded to fan speculation over whether or not Solo had returned as a “Force ghost,” despite the fact that Solo wasn’t able to use the Force while he was alive.

“A Force ghost? I don’t know what a Force ghost is,” Ford said, adding, “And I don’t care!”

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The actor starred as Solo in the original Star Wars trilogy from 1977 to 1983, before making his long-awaited return in 2017’s The Force Awakens. Original costars Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher (Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia, respectively) also returned for the most recent trilogy, alongside new characters like Rey and Poe Dameron.

Ford can next be seen in adventure film The Call of the Wild, which opens in theaters on Friday.