Last month, Mark Hamill promoted Ariana Grande’s new single “Thank U, Next” without even realizing he was doing it, prompting an unexpected Twitter exchange between the Star Wars lead and the world famous pop singer that had fans on both sides of the pop culture crossover feeling giddy. And now that the hit song’s video has broken the YouTube record for most views within 24 hours of release, Hamill has taken the opportunity to wish all the best for his new friend.
In a recent tweet, the Luke Skywalker actor admitted to being responsible for at least one of the music video’s 80 million-plus views, before making the not-so-bold prediction that Grande has big things ahead of her.
“Hey- Remember when I became accidental twitter-pals with @ArianaGrande?,” wrote Hamill. “Well, I just saw her new video & even though I’m not an expert- I predict a very bright future for this young lady!”
Presumably, Hamill is being at least a little tongue-in-cheek in his forecast of a bright future for Grande, seeing how he’s previously acknowledged that the platinum-selling singer is already “one of the most popular artists in the history of showbiz.” Either way, Grande herself soon responded, and it seems that Hamill’s endorsement has left her touched and a little overwhelmed:
“thanks, luke skywalker. i’m gonna go sob in a corner and watch all your movies again now. have a good one.”
If you’re unaware of this unlikely pair’s online history, their exchanges all started after Hamill began taking requests from fans for messages to share, resulting in the actor tweeting the words, “Thank you, next,” without actually getting the reference.
Once Hamill found out that this was the name of both a song and an upcoming album from Grande, he posted a follow-up message apologizing to the artist and admitting that he’s out of touch. And as big as the singer is these days, it seems that even Grande isn’t above geeking out when Luke Skywalker himself gives her a mention.
In any case, we can’t be too hard on Hamill for not keeping up to date with what the kids are currently listening to when he’s a little preoccupied bringing the Skywalker saga to a close with Star Wars: Episode IX. The conclusion to Disney’s ongoing Sequel Trilogy hits theaters on December 20th, 2019, and in the meantime, you can expect plenty more Twitter shenanigans from Hamill, but little in the way of actual spoilers.
