Mark Hamill Gave Biden This Hilarious Star Wars-Themed Nickname on His Visit to the White House

Mark Hamill made a noteworthy trip to Washington, D.C., right before May 4th, where he met with President Joe Biden. On May 3, in advance of Star Wars Day, the 72-year-old actor—a regular opponent of Republican front-runner Donald Trump—showed up at the White House for a news conference with news Secretary Karine-Jean Pierre, PEOPLE reported.

In a video clip from the conference released by the White House Press Secretary's office on X, Hamill talked about his chat with Biden and even came up with an amusing new nickname for the president, 81.

"How many of you had 'Mark Hamill leads the press briefing on your bingo card,' hands? Yeah, me either," Hamill said standing behind the press-briefing podium next to Pierre. "And look, I just got to meet the president and he gave me these aviator glasses. I love the merch."

Regarding the question of whether he and Biden discussed Star Wars, Hamill stated, "Well, you know, I called him Mr. President, and he said, 'You can call me Joe.' I said, 'Can I call you Joe-bi-Wan Kenobi?'" He said, "He liked that," referring to Biden's response to the nickname, which was a play on the Star Wars figure Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Hamill described his experience of meeting the President at the White House. "First of all, I only expected to be in there for like five minutes," Hamill said. "He showed us all these photographs. It was really amazing to me. I was invited to the Carter White House and I came, and then I came to the Obama White House. But I was never invited to the Oval Office, so this was extra special." 

In addition to citing Biden's accomplishments, Hamill, who portrayed the legendary character of Star Wars protagonist Luke Skywalker from 1977 to 1983, said he was “honored” to be asked to meet “the most legislatively successful president in my lifetime,” The Guardian reported.

The actor stated to reporters, “It just shows you that just one person can be so influential and so positive in our lives,” adding he was open to inquiries, “although no Star Wars questions, please”. 

With the presidential election just six months away, the Biden campaign may try to use several Hollywood celebrities, including Hamill. Robert De Niro, an actor and director, spoke out against Trump on May 2, advising Joe Biden to “go at him hard” and “keep up the fight.”

In a segment for MSNBC's The 11th Hour, Stephanie Ruhle interviewed De Niro, who cautioned, “The guy’s a monster. He is beyond wrong. It’s almost like he wants to do the most horrible things that he can think of in order to get a rise out of us. I don’t know what it is but he’s been doing it and doing it, and it’s f**ing scary.”