Quentin Pierre
Sergeant Edian, Snowtrooper (The Empire Strikes Back), Royal guard (Return of the Jedi)
Interview: May 2010
How did you get started in the movie business?
I started as a stage actor and model to get my Equity card.
If I’m correct you were Billy Dee Williams double and you played the roles of a Bespin guard in The Empire Strikes Back and a Royal guard in Return of the Jedi. Are there more parts you played?
I actually worked on all of the Star Wars movies. On the first
one the stunt arranger Peter Diamond had me working with him all the
time, Tommy Weldin and I did quite a lot of work on that one.
Also on more than one occasion I was Boba Fett when Jeremy Bulloch was not there. On The Empire Strikes Back
I was in Finse, Norway with the stunt team as a Stormtrooper, and came
back and was an acting stand-in for Billy Dee Williams (Lando
Calrissian) and I doubled him as well. As you know I was Sergeant Edian,
a Bespin guard and I was also an Royal guard. They loved me on all
three of them,
Can you share some of your memories regarding the filming of your scenes in both Star Wars movies you played in?
Lots of hanging around and the suits were sweaty and smelly. We used plenty of talcum powder.
Did any remarkable, unique, strange or funny things happen on the set?
Plenty of people kept bumping into each other as they could not see out of the visors.
You were directed by Irvin Kershner and Richard Marquand. What were the biggest differences between these two men regarding the way they directed?
Irvin Kershner was a fidget and was always changing the shots. Richard Marquand, being much younger, listened to his first Assistant Director David Tomblin, who was a genius.
You have been Morgan Freeman’s double for almost 20 years if I’m correct. How did you manage to get this job?
I’m Mr. Freeman’s executive personal assistant. It’s a job I have had for the last 21 years. I met him on the movie Glory when I was doubling Denzel Washington.
What is your exact task being Mr. Freeman’s double?
I doubled him on Prince of Thieves as I could ride a horse and there was more that one unit shooting at the same time.
What do you regard as your personal highlight in your career?
Meeting and working with James Cagney, and being offered jobs by Marlon Brando and Tom Selleck.
