Samuel L. Jackson keen to lobby J.J. Abrams for Star Wars role

Actor Samuel L. Jackson is considering joining forces with Mark Hamill and Ewan Mcgregor to lobby director J.J. Abrams in person for roles in the new Star Wars sequel after revealing he hasn't been invited to reprise his sci-fi character.

The Django Unchained star, who portrayed Jedi Master Mace Windu in three of the six Star Wars films, recently found himself working with Hamill in London and decided to ask the original Luke Skywalker if he had officially been offered a job in Abrams' upcoming seventh film.

He also quizzed McGregor, who played Obi-Wan Kenobi opposite him in the most recent films, about Star Wars: Episode VII and was surprised to discover that none of the trio had been recruited for the top secret project.

Jackson tells talk show host David Letterman, "I asked Mark if he'd heard from J.J. Abrams and he said, 'No', and then all of a sudden, Ewan was there (in London) and I spoke to him on the phone, asked him if he was there doing Star Wars. He said, 'No, they haven't called me.'

"So I was thinking, maybe all three of us could just get together and go over to the Star Wars set and just stand around and see if maybe they could use some old Jedi! And then I heard on television they were auditioning people for Star Wars and I said, 'Well, maybe we should just go through the auditions and see if we can get a job!'"

Jackson admits he's a little disappointed at the prospect of not appearing in Episode VII after making it clear to Abrams that he would jump at the chance to return to the franchise after they were both guests at Star Wars creator George Lucas' summer (13) nuptials.

He adds, "I pretty much hinted to J.J. that I wanted to be in the film at George Lucas' wedding, and he was kinda like, 'Mmm', that was about the most I got out of him."

Official casting announcements have yet to be made, but Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher had all previously been asked by Lucas to make appearances in the forthcoming sequel, while young actors Michael B. Jordan and Irish beauty Saoirse Ronan have confirmed that they recently auditioned for parts.

Production on Star Wars: Episode VII is set to begin in the U.K. early next year (14).