In the build up to the release of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Mark Hamill revealed that he “fundamentally disagreed” with what director Rian Johnson had in store for his character Luke Skywalker, and even recently stated that he wished Disney had went with George Lucas’ original vision for the Sequel Trilogy.
Now that the movie is here, it seems a lot of fans can emphathise with Hamill over Luke’s treatment in The Last Jedi, and the actor has now elaborated on the issues he had with the characterisation.
“I said to Rian, ‘Jedi’s don’t give up,’” said Hamill. “I mean, even if he had a problem, he would maybe take a year to try and regroup. But if he made a mistake, he would try and right that wrong. So, right there we had a fundamental difference, but it’s not my story anymore, it’s somebody else’s story – and Rian needed me to be a certain way to make the ending effective. That’s the crux of my problem. Luke would never say that. I’m sorry. Well, in this version, see I’m talking about the George Lucas Star Wars, this is the next generation of Star Wars, so I almost had to think of Luke as another character. Maybe he’s Jake Skywalker. He’s not my Luke Skywalker, but I had to do what Rian wanted me to do because it serves the story well. But listen, I still haven’t accepted it completely. But it’s only a movie. I hope people like it. I hope they don’t get upset, and I came to really believe that Rian was the exact man that they needed for this job.”
SEE ALSO: Star Wars: The Last Jedi deleted scene description reveals Luke Skywalker’s third lesson to Rey
SEE ALSO: Rian Johnson responds to fan criticism of Star Wars: The Last Jedi
You can watch Hamill’s comments here, and let us know in the comments below what you make of the way Luke was handled in The Last Jedi…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIY-PsHrj9A
In Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the Skywalker saga continues as the heroes of The Force Awakens join the galactic legends in an epic adventure that unlocks age-old mysteries of the Force and shocking revelations of the past.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi sees returning cast members Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Carrie Fisher (Leia Organa), Adam Driver (Kylo Ren), Daisy Ridley (Rey), John Boyega (Finn), Oscar Isaac (Poe Dameron), Lupita Nyong’o (Maz Kanata), Domhnall Gleeson (General Hux), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Gwendoline Christie (Captain Phasma), Billie Lourd (Lieutenant Connix), Andy Serkis (Supreme Leader Snoke), Peter Mayhew and Joonas Suotamo (Chewbacca), Tim Rose (Admiral Ackbar), Mike Quinn (Nien Nunb) and Warwick Davis joined by new additions Jimmy Vee (Pan) as R2-D2, Kelly Marie Tran (Ladies Like Us) as Rose, Benicio Del Toro (Guardians of the Galaxy) as DJ and Laura Dern (Jurassic Park) as Vice Admiral Holdo.