Mark Hamill Calls ‘Rise Of Skywalker’ ‘Bittersweet’ As He Reflects On His Final Time Playing Luke Skywalker
On Saturday, May 9, as part of an annual series of tweets with variations on “May The [Date] Be,” Mark Hamill posted a photo of the older Luke Skywalker and a message of goodbye to his most iconic character.
The portrayal of Skywalker in the newest films has been controversial among Star Wars fans. The character’s largest role in the three films was in middle installment The Last Jedi. Compared to the idealistic Jedi-in-training of the original trilogy, he was a hermit haunted by his past.
Many fans have complained about where writer-director Rian Johnson took their beloved character. However, Hamill said that while he had some initial doubts about the direction of the plot, he described the film as “great.”
May The 9th Be A Bittersweet Episode- Knowing It Was The Last Time I Would Ever Play Luke#ByeByeSkywalker pic.twitter.com/KjWKVSksLZ
— Mark Hamill (@MarkHamill) May 9, 2020
So far, this post has received the most replies of any in Hamill’s May series for 2020. More than 2,000 people have chimed in. There are many positive responses, including one fan tweeting that Skywalker would always have a special place in his life.
“Luke will always be my favorite Star Wars character and a hero to me. Thank you for bringing the incredible character to life.”
Many of the comments were filled with emotion and gratitude.
“Nooooooooo don’t make me cry,” one user tweeted with a frowning emoji.
“I’m okay,” another responded followed by a GIF of a child breaking into tears.
However, there were also people who posted gripes about the latest installment and the trilogy as a whole.
“Sucks that you had to go out with that nonsensical disaster,” read one tweet.
Hamill’s appearance as a Force ghost version of Luke Skywalker in The Rise of Skywalker seemed to act as a sendoff to his beloved character. His original co-stars, Harrison Ford and the late Carrie Fisher, were also given proper sendoffs in The Force Awakens and The Rise of Skywalker, respectively.
While it seems likely this was the last time Hamill will play Skywalker, he has kept up with his “May the” series. On Sunday, May 10, he tweeted a message of gratitude to mothers for Mother’s Day. Earlier today, he commemorated May 11 as the day iconic British comedy group Monty Python was formed in 1969.
Even though this seems to be the end of the road for Luke Skywalker, the Star Wars film catalog is anything but over. Recently, Academy Award-winning director of Jojo Rabbit and Thor: Ragnarok Taika Waititi was announced as the director of an upcoming installment in the series.
