When it comes to younger versions of iconic characters in “Star Wars,” the franchise has vacillated between two options.
On the one hand, there’s digital facial replacement as with Tarkin and Princess Leia in “Rogue One” and with Luke Skywalker in “The Mandalorian” and its spin-off. On the other there’s straight-up casting other actors, from Obi-Wan Kenobi in the prequels and mini-series to Mon Mothma in “Andor,” and both Han Solo and Lando Calrissian in “Solo”.
Episode 6 of “The Book of Boba Fett” used a combination of on-set stand-in, digital deepfake tech and AI voice tweaking to convey a Luke Skywalker just a few years after the events of “Return of the Jedi”. The visual effect was both impressive and disturbing and divided the fanbase.
Some have called for a full post-“Return of the Jedi” film to be done via this digital face-swapping technique – something Hamill would have to be onboard for. From the sounds of it though, he has no interest as he tells Esquire he believes they should recast:
“It is unusual to see yourself like that. It can’t be cheap. People say, ‘Oh, now you’re going to be able to do a whole series of Luke post-Return of the Jedi.’ I said, ‘I don’t think so.’ First of all, they don’t need to tell those stories, but if they do, they could get an age-appropriate actor.”
One way Hamill could return is as a Force Ghost in the upcoming “New Jedi Order” film set post-“Rise of Skywalker” as Rey (Daisy Ridley) trains the next generation of Jedi. However, he won’t speculate on that front:
“One thing you learn working for Lucasfilm: everything is confidential. Everything is confidential. So, if I were involved, I wouldn’t be able to tell you. And if I were not involved, I wouldn’t be able to tell you. So, I don’t know. We’ll all find out together, I guess.”
For years there have been fan calls to put Sebastian Stan in the role, though the 40-year-old Marvel actor has now somewhat aged out of playing the part for ‘The New Republic’ time period (the Mandoverse), where Luke is in his late 20s.
