As Natalie Portman would possibly tell you, the Star Wars prequels had a way of draining the charm and personality out of even the most talented and charismatic of stars, and yet Samuel L. Jackson emerged from the oft-ridiculed trilogy more or less unscathed. While his turn as Mace Windu was weighed down by some typically stiff dialogue, the Jedi master made a strong enough impression with viewers that there’s still a significant demand for Jackson to wield the purple lightsaber once more.
And going by his statements to Red Carpet News TV, the actor himself would certainly be open to giving the fans what they want. “I’ll cash that check,” Jackson responded, when asked if Mace might ever make a comeback. After further questioning, the Incredibles 2 star continued, “Yeah, I’m totally interested in revisiting Mace Windu, always. Jedi never die.”
While that last statement could certainly be applied to the various Force ghosts that continue to populate the series, the property also has a history of bringing supposedly deceased characters back to life whenever there’s fan demand. Just take Boba Fett for example, who seemingly met his demise in the Sarlacc Pit in Return of the Jedi, only to be alive and well in various Expanded Universe fictions.
But while the canonicity of Boba’s survival in the new Disney era is debatable, the continued existence of Darth Maul after the events of The Phantom Menace remains official, with the horned Sith even breaking back into the movies with the recent Solo: A Star Wars Story.
In short, despite being thrown from a tall building after getting his hand sliced off in Revenge of the Sith, Mace Windu could totally come back. In fact, Jackson himself practically said as much at the Star Wars Celebration 40th anniversary panel in 2017, telling attendees:
“I know you’re all in my corner on this. We all know Jedi can fall from incredible heights and survive, so apparently, I am not dead. Yes, I have two appendages right now, but we know the long and rich history of Star Wars characters reappearing with new appendages and being stronger and better than they ever were. Mace Windu is awaiting his return, let’s make it happen!”
If Disney ever does make this happen, it could be a long wait, seeing how the next planned Star Wars movie, Episode IX, isn’t set for release until December 20th, 2019. Still, if Ewan McGregor can possibly return for the latest trilogy’s conclusion, then maybe a Jackson cameo isn’t completely off the table, either.
