The famous Star Wars actor is also no stranger to Ukraine. Last year he was appointed ambassador to support the Ukraine Army of Drones project, accepting the role from President Zelenskyy.
Source: Associated Press
“Attention. Air raid alert,” the voice said with the gravity of a Jedi knight. “Go to the nearest shelter.”
It’s a surreal moment in an already surreal war: actor Mark Hamill’s low but soothing baritone, Star Wars’ Luke Skywalker, urges people to take cover whenever Russia unleashes another aerial bombardment on Ukraine.
The intrusion of Hollywood sci-fi fantasy into the grim everyday realities of the war in Ukraine is a consequence of Hamill’s decision to lend his famed voice to Air Alert, a downloadable app tied to the NATO Air Defense System. Ukraine.
When air raid sirens begin to wail, the app also warns Ukrainians that deadly Russian missiles, bombs and explosive drones could be coming.
“Don’t be careless,” Hamill’s voice advises. “Your overconfidence is your weakness.”
And what do ordinary Ukrainians think of the app?
Olena Yeremina, a 38-year-old businesswoman in the capital, Kyiv, said Hamill’s “May the Force be with you” signature first made her laugh. Now his enduring humor gives him strength.
“That’s a very cool phrase for this situation,” she said. “I wouldn’t say I feel like a Ukrainian Jedi, but sometimes that phrase reminds me to straighten my shoulders and keep working.”
According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation, the app is used by around 11 million Ukrainians.
We remind you that the “Air Raid” application was developed to warn the Ukrainian population with the support of the Ministry of Digital Transformation. It is currently used by 11,000,000 smartphone owners.