Who ever said George Lucas was a good writer?

Besides, in the 1974 rough draft, he very clearly stated that Princess Leia Aquilae had auburn hair and blue eyes, while both secondary protagonist Clieg Whitsun and Annikin Starkiller's brother Deak were blond.

Of course, back in the 1970s, GL had a certain amount of flexibility when it came to the appearance of his characters. Han Solo was almost played by a black actor, remember, and the first choice for Obi-Wan Kenobi was actually Toshiro Mifune.

Luke Starkiller himself was almost played by dark-haired Jewish actor Will Seltzer. But Mark Hamill, who turned up almost at the end of the casting sessions, not only had the acting chops; he also fit GL's vision of Luke as a blond Flash Gordon type.

Mind you, this flexibility seems to have evaporated by the time of the prequels.

Watch the making-of documentary on the TPM DVD and you'll see GL pass over a child actor who was clearly the better choice for young Anakin, in favor of the "cuter" (and blonder) Jake Lloyd, who was much worse in terms of flubbing his lines.

That's the peril inherent in trying to find an actor to fit your pre-existing mental image precisely. GL should have remembered the wisdom of his younger self.