Mark Hamill Regrets Speaking Out Against ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi,’ Says Rian Johnson Made an ‘All-Time Great’ Entry
Zack Sharf
[Editor’s Note: Spoilers for “The Last Jedi” follow.]
The fan backlash against “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” has been making headlines ever since the Rian Johnson-directed sequel opened on December 15. Many of the complaints were seemingly validated after Mark Hamill expressed his own concerns over Luke Skywalker’s story arc. Now the actor is taking a step back, admitting he regrets speaking out publicly against the film and confirming his belief that “The Last Jedi” is an all-time great “Star Wars” film.
“I regret voicing my doubts and insecurities in public,” Hamill tweeted the day after Christmas. “Creative differences are a common element of any project but usually remain private. All I wanted was to make good movie. I got more than tha – Rian Johnson made an all-time GREAT one!”
I regret voicing my doubts & insecurities in public.Creative differences are a common element of any project but usually remain private. All I wanted was to make good movie. I got more than that- @rianjohnson made an all-time GREAT one! #HumbledHamill https://t.co/8ujJfBuEdV
— @HamillHimself (@HamillHimself) December 26, 2017
Hamill caused a stir earlier this month after an interview in which he shared his own original problems with Luke’s role in “The Last Jedi” went viral. The actor said he “still hasn’t accepted” the changes to his iconic character, including the fact that Luke would go into hiding on a desolate island for years after the destruction of the Jedi temple.
“I said to Rian, ‘Jedis don’t give up.’ I mean, even if [Luke] had a problem, he would maybe take a year to try and regroup, but if he made a mistake, he would try to right that wrong, so right there, we had a fundamental difference,” Hamill said.
The actor said Johnson’s script turned Luke into an entirely different character, so much so that he approached “The Last Jedi” by playing Luke as “another character.”
“Maybe he’s ‘Jake Skywalker,’ he’s not my Luke Skywalker,” Hamill said. “But I had to do what Rian wanted me to do because it serves the story well. Listen, I still haven’t accepted it completely, but, it’s only a movie. I hope people like it. I hope they don’t get upset. I came to really believe that Rian was the exact man they needed for this job.”
Despite his initial creative differences with Skywalker’s story arc, Hamill eventually came around to trust and enjoy Johnson’s radical new vision for “Star Wars.” Although there is still a considerable amount of backlash against the movie, numerous film critics and fans would agree with Hamill’s new statement calling “The Last Jedi” an all-time great entry.
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