Star Wars legend Mark Hamill is not only beloved by sci-fi fans, as superhero/comic book lovers classify him as an icon, too. The actor has voiced the role of Batman’s nemesis the Joker across numerous animated TV series, movies and video games for the past 25 years. Not to mention his recurring role as the Trickster on The Flash.
Seeing as he’s featured in some of the strongest comic book adaptations, ever – Batman: The Animated Series springs to mind – Hamill’s opinion on the state of superhero fiction deserves to be heard. And, as it turns out, he has a few gripes with the current glut of Marvel and DC movies.
In an interview with USA Today, he was asked for his thoughts on the genre and the state it’s in, and here’s what the actor had to say:
“I don’t know what’s going on with superhero movies. They’re fantastic, but I think we’re reaching a point of oversaturation. So that’s why the story is so important, is that the gimmicks and all that, they can only take you so far. That’s what I want, better stories.”
Clearly, Hamill is still a big fan of superheroes and admits that the genre is “fantastic,” but he does have a problem with how many of them there are around at the moment. And even hardcore comic book movie lovers would have to agree with him that story is the most important factor when making these films – any film, in fact.
Still, it seems odd that Hamill would make this comment in a year which has seen at least two highly-acclaimed superhero flicks that have been praised for featuring standalone, self-contained narratives with a lot of emotional depth and strong characterization. Namely, Logan and Wonder Woman.
He does have a point though, and if you too are feeling fatigued by the genre, you can look forward to Hamill reprising his iconic role of Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, which blasts into this galaxy on December 15th.