Mark Hamill once commented on whyThe Empire Strikes Backis his favoriteStar Warsmovie, yet his reasoning only made me more confused about his opinion onThe Last Jedi. When talking about theranking ofStar Warsmovies,The Empire Strikes BackandThe Last Jediare somewhat polar opposites.
The Last Jedi’s many controversiessolidified it as the most divisiveStar Warsmovie to date, whileThe Empire Strikes Backis often considered the best in the franchise. The former was so divisive that it led to issues withThe Rise of Skywalker, too, resulting in the sequels being regarded as theworst-rankedStar Warstrilogy.
Conversely,Empire’s reputation as the strongest film in the saga only grows, with Hamill himself agreeing. In an interview withThe Hollywood Reporterin 2019, Hamill outlined exactly whyEmpireis his favoriteStar Warsmovie:"…because it was so unexpected to have the protagonist be so soundly defeated. Losing the hand and the dad Vader, all of it was pretty unexpected."
Hamill’s reasoning is sound, asThe Empire Strikes Back’s twists and turnsare exactly what make it so fantastic to this day. Nonetheless, I cannot help but wonder about these comments in conjunction with Hamill’s opinion aboutStar Wars: The Last Jedi; It’s safe to say the iconicStar Warsactor has confused me.
Mark Hamill Has Been Open About His Opinion Of Star Wars: The Last Jedi
The Actor Did Not Disagree With Some Choices Made In Episode VIII
Since 2017 and the release ofStar Wars: The Last Jedi, a big discussion point in the fandom is whether Mark Hamill hates the movie. Of course, Hamill remains a consummate professional and has always insisted that creative differences are normal in storytelling. More recently, Hamill spoke about creating amotivation for Luke Skywalker inThe Last Jedi.
During this interview, Hamill reiterated that he never disliked writer-director Rian Johnson and was sad that his comments aboutThe Last Jedihad convinced people otherwise. With all that in mind, it is worth exploring exactly what Hamill has stated aboutThe Last Jediover the years. The crux of this entire discussion came shortly afterThe Last Jedi’s release.
In an interview withComicbook.com, Hamill stated that he fundamentally disagreed with the depiction of Luke as a bitter old man who had come to the decision that the Jedi needed to end. Hamill insisted,“That’s the crux of my problem. Luke would never say that,“dubbing this version of the character as Jake Skywalker as a result.
Despite later voicing his regret over revealing these creative differences to the world, Hamill has doubled down on that view over the years. The aforementioned interview involving Hamill’s own motivation for Luke inThe Last Jediexplains as much, with the actor believing the film did not justify the former Jedi Master’s drastic actions.
Hamill’s Comments About Both Star Wars Films Have Me Confused
Hamill’s Opinions Seemingly Clash
When taking into account Hamill’s comments about bothThe Empire Strikes BackandThe Last Jedi, it is clear how he feels about each. However, I cannot deny that this has caused some confusion for me. The primary reason for this is thatHamill dislikesThe Last Jedifor the exact same reasons he praisesThe Empire Strikes Back.
Hamill loves the latter film for its unexpected final act, in which Vader is revealed as Anakin Skywalker, cuts off Luke’s hand, and leaves the hero ofStar Warsbroken and defeated. The unexpected nature of this is exactly what Hamill cites as his reasoning for whyEmpireworks so well, yet it is precisely why he dislikesThe Last Jedi.
Both movies see Luke suffering a major, unexpected defeat, yet one is praised while the other is not…
IfStar Wars: The Last Jedican be described as anything, it is unexpected. The film tried to subvert expectations of what aStar Warsmovie was, including making Luke a disillusioned old man who simply wants to die alone on an island in the middle of nowhere. Luke’s reason for this was the downfall of Kylo Ren.
When Ben Solo fell to the dark side, Luke Skywalker was soundly defeated, in both body and spirit,causing his exile to Ahch-To. This raises the question, then, is this all that different from the final moments ofThe Empire Strikes Back? Both movies see Luke suffering a major, unexpected defeat, yet one is praised while the other is not.
The Last Jedi’s Luke Story Has One Key Difference From Empire, But It’s Why The Film Works So Well
If I were to raise one key difference between Luke’s respective defeats inThe Last JediandThe Empire Strikes Back, it would be that the former was a choice. After failing to save Ben Solo and the other Jedi students in his temple, Luke chose to disappear and fall victim to his human instincts.
Luke believed he was nothing more than a legend that could not live up to his reputation. InThe Empire Strikes Back, though, Luke’s defeat was forced upon him by Vader. This could explain why Hamill likes one film while the other does not resonate with him, but I think this difference proves whyThe Last Jediworks so well.
Yes, Luke chose to give up and be defeated, which Hamill disagreed with. That said, what makesThe Last Jediso impactful is that Luke admits he was wrong. In the film’s ending, he strides out to meet the First Order to buy time for the Resistance to escape, leaning into his legendary status to reignite the spark of rebellion that leads to the galaxy’s eventual freedom.
Just like Luke chose to give up, he subsequently chose to go against that and fight for what is right.This arguably makesThe Last Jedi’s Luke an even stronger character thanEmpire’s Luke, as the former had to pick himself up from a dark choice he made, as opposed to facing what was thrown at himby evil forces.
All of this sums up why I am confused by Hamill’s choices. I, personally, see the similarities inThe Empire Strikes BackandThe Last Jedi, which Hamill sums up. Nonetheless, the actor remains steadfast in his opinions about theStar Warsmovies, despite them offering more thematic likenesses with one another than first thought.
