Luke’s story in Star Wars: The Last Jedi was among the most divisive elements of a film that didn’t lack for reasons to make franchise traditionalists mad, but apparently artist Tony Warne found much to inspire him in the movie’s Ahch-To passages, creating this moody piece in which the Jedi is confronted by his father and old mentors.
Though the image seems to be partly based on Rey’s nighttime clash with the hero, as well as Yoda’s surprise cameo, this piece is also very much a callback to the ending of Return of the Jedi. Once more, Mark Hamill’s character is seeing the ghosts of Obi-Wan, Yoda and Anakin – specifically, the Anakin that appeared in the 1983 movie’s theatrical cut, before George Lucas controversially inserted Hayden Christensen in his place.
Though the Rian Johnson-helmed flick would end with Luke losing his life, Hamill is already confirmed to return for the upcoming Star Wars: Episode IX, and there’s a good chance that he himself will be taking Force Ghost form. Beyond this, the character’s been the subject of countless rumors and theories, but if you’re looking for confirmation on any of these reports, Hamill’s unlikely to help you out, with the star recently tweeting in clear-cut terms that he won’t be answering any questions on next year’s release.
That being said, the actor clearly doesn’t have a problem talking about his prior appearances in the series. In fact, just a few days ago, Hamill offered this tongue-in-cheek observation about his character’s fate in Star Wars: The Last Jedi:
“THE FORCE KILLED LUKE. You have to acknowledge the irony in his fate.
Almost like an addict that kicked his habit cold-turkey, remained clean for decades, only to re-use just once & then, tragically, overdoses.#SadSkywalker #ForceFatality #JediJunkie”
We’ll see what’s next for this Jedi Junkie when Episode IX hits theaters on December 20th, 2019.
