Will he; won’t he?
That’s currently one of the most pressing questions floating around Star Wars: Episode IX, as budding fans theorize about Luke Skywalker’s potential involvement – or lack thereof – in the upcoming sequel.
If you recall, in a powerful and profound moment of self-sacrifice, Mark Hamill’s character gave his life in order to save the Resistance during the finale of Episode VIII, where he called on the Force to project a hologram of himself half-way across the galaxy. And so, once the penny dropped, Luke’s robes crumpled before our very eyes, as the iconic hero basked in the ethereal glow of a twin sunset.
But the question remains: will Luke Skywalker feature in Episode IX? We’re inclined to say yes, perhaps in Force ghost form, and though Hamill has said in the past that he’d be interested in returning, he’s now told ABC News that on a certain level, he doesn’t really care to do more Star Wars. And that’s because of Carrie Fisher’s passing, along with the killing off of Han Solo.
“It really has tarnished my ability to enjoy it to its fullest,” Hamill said. “You were asking earlier, ‘Are you gonna come back?’ I don’t care anymore, on that level.
Because Han Solo is gone, Luke is gone. You just can’t get the band back together the way you wanted it to be, and it shouldn’t be that way. It is what it is. Rather than being sorry that we can’t have more of her, I’m just grateful that we had the time with her that we did.”
We can certainly see where the actor’s coming from here. As the last of the original trio still remaining in the franchise, some of the appeal in continuing to make Star Wars movies is no doubt lost. Then again, he’s always been pretty vocal about wanting to show up in Episode IX, so it would seem that he’s not totally over that galaxy far, far away yet. It’s just not the same for him without Carrie and Harrison around – and that’s completely understandable.
Next up for Lucasfilm’s juggernaut is the release of Solo: A Star Wars Story on May 25th, and it’s looking prettier than ever. Episode IX will then follow suit in 2019, before the Powers That Be begin devoting their attention to Rian Johnson’s all-new Star Wars trilogy, which continues to pique our curiosity with every passing interview.
