For the past year, Luke Skywalker has remained by far the favorite character of the Star Wars: Episode IX rumor mill, with the hero getting enough reported scenes to fill up his own solo movie. But while this latest report, like the many that came before it, gives off definite fan-pandering vibes, it at least brings some fairly novel ideas to the discussion.
The Express relays claims that Lucasfilm is bringing in an actor to play the role of a younger Luke. And though you can imagine that fans wouldn’t take too well to seeing anyone but Mark Hamill playing the part, it’s also alleged that this newcomer will only serve as Luke’s body, with Hamill’s de-aged face being imposed onto the character.
Essentially, it’s a similar idea to the one that saw the return of Leia in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, only with Hamill himself playing a more active role in the process. In fact, a more fitting point of comparison might be 2015’s Terminator Genisys, which also saw Arnold Schwarzenegger perform with his face CGI’d onto a younger stand-in.
There are so many Luke Skywalker rumors making the rounds these days that it’s almost impossible to take any one report seriously, and this latest claim is certainly no exception. Still, we don’t doubt the technology is there to pull off such a feat, and for all we know, J.J. Abrams has a legitimate reason for taking the saga back a couple of decades. After all, this next film is set to serve as the culmination point for the entire Skywalker Saga, which presumably means finding a way to keep the events of the Original Trilogy relevant to the current story.
In any case, we’ll find out if Star Wars: Episode IX has any insight to offer on Luke’s younger days when the film hits theaters on December 20th, 2019.