Dubai-based lawyer landed extra role in Star Wars by chance

This content was originally posted in 7DAYS UAE website at: Dubai-based lawyer landed extra role in Star Wars by chance An expat unwittingly landed what would be a dream role for most Star Wars fans when she was chosen to be an extra in the upcoming blockbuster. But Madeleine Mendy, 35, confessed she’d never seen any movies in the hit-franchise – and thought she was at an audition for Star Trek. The British-French family lawyer, who lives in Dubai, told 7DAYS she had only gone along to the audition to accompany a friend. She ended up with a brief speaking role with lead actor John Boyega on set in Abu Dhabi, and her friend didn’t even get a part. Mendy described her whirlwind four days on the planet Jakku, ahead of the regional premiere in the capital on Wednesday night. Mendy said: “It was very random, I only went to accompany a friend, gave an interview for casting anyway and got picked. I have never watched Star Wars and have no idea what it is about. “For me, it wasn’t a big deal, but there were so many fans there, going crazy about being in the movie… and at first I thought we were shooting Star Trek! “I was cast as the black lady with the tripod on her head, and in one scene the Stormtroopers come into our village. “John Boyega has to be really thirsty and ask me for water and I had to push him away saying, “No water”. RELATED: Pictures: ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ world premiere Mendy is confident her scene made it to the final cut but will have to wait a few days see if she is immortalised in screen fame. Although the four-day shoot in the May heat was tiring, Mendy was thrilled to meet the stars. She said: “I spoke to Boyega in between the shots and also [director] JJ Abrams. They had made customised dishdashas for the Abu Dhabi crew with the movie logo on it, which I was able to get my hands on and got it autographed by Adams.” Mendy revealed that some extras tried to take items from the set as memorabilia, and although she did not, she accidentally kept the gloves from her costume. She said: “I contacted the studio in London to inform them, but there was no response. My friends have been asking me for them but I plan on returning them.” A British couple, Mark Pickup, 39 and Melanie, 37, both “huge Star Wars” fans, also landed parts as extras on set as Sand People-like characters that fight the Stormtroopers. “After getting married and having my two children I think this is the best experience of my life,” Mark, a DJ at Dubai’s 360 venue, told 7DAYS. “Being on set, in costume, with a laser gun, fighting Stormtroopers as they came into our village, with explosives going off – it is every kid’s dream.” “I was also part of the ‘behind the scenes’ shoot and they asked me ‘what are you taking back from this experience’. I said, that once my son grows older, he will be able to say his mum and dad were in Star Wars.” mahak@7days.ae Read the original story at: Dubai-based lawyer landed extra role in Star Wars by chance