Mark Hamill doubts he will return for the next ‘Star Wars’ movie
During the 2023 Star Wars Celebration held last month, Lucasfilm disclosed plans for several more films in the franchise, with an upcoming entry focusing on the character of Rey set 15 years after the events of the sequel trilogy, which would reportedly focus on Rey’s mission to restore the Jedi Order.
This was met with a mixture of enthusiasm and bemusement from fans. The sequel trilogy was hugely divisive – costing approximately $1billion – inciting criticism from George Lucas himself and experiencing diminishing box-office returns with each entry, something until then unheard of for any Star Wars content.
A frequent commentator on the state of the franchise is Mark Hamill, the actor who played the original trilogy’s Luke Skywalker and a well-documented vocal critic of Disney’s Star Wars films. Asked by The Hollywood Reporter whether he would be reprising the role of Skywalker in the upcoming movie, Hamill categorically shut the speculation down.
“No,” Hamill stated. “I don’t have any expectations of that happening”. The statement comes after several rumours that Luke Skywalker would appear in future films as a ghost that would provide support to Daisy Ridley’s Rey, as deceased Jedi have been known throughout the franchise to return from beyond the grave with the aid of The Force.
Nevertheless, Hamill makes it clear that his involvement with the Star Wars franchise has come to an end. Commenting on The Last Jedi (2017), the second instalment of the new trilogy that saw his iconic character die, Hamill said: “The whole thing was emotional, because when I read [Episode] VIII, I knew it was over.” This comes in contrast to other cast members who’ve voiced their support for a return to the series.
Despite this, since the release of Episode VIII, audiences have continued to see younger versions of Luke Skywalker in Disney+ shows The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett, both of which are set in the years between the original trilogy and Disney’s new one. These opted for deep fake technology, using CGI to render the 1970s and 1980s era Hamill rather than recasting the role altogether.
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