Has Mark Hamill finally cast his lightsaber aside? In a new interview with CBS News, Hamill, who turns 72 this year but will forever remain known for playing Luke Skywalker in Star Wars despite a lengthy resume, implied that he won’t be returning to the role again, noting that he has had “enough” of the character, who audiences last saw in Disney’s sequel trilogy and the season two finale of The Mandalorian with Pedro Pascal. While Hamill was smart enough not to rule things out entirely (read: Disney bucks), the actor presented the idea that Star Wars doesn’t need Luke anymore.
From a CBS News feature:
He can’t (and won’t) say if he’ll ever return. “I had my time, and that’s good,” he said. “But that’s enough.”
Smith asked, “So, even though you say you won’t go back, there’s always a chance that you could go back?”
“Well, you never say never. I just don’t see any reason to. Let me put it that way: I mean, they have so many stories to tell, they don’t need Luke anymore.”
“You know that a lot of people out there would argue, ‘They always need Luke,'” said Smith.
Hamill laughed.
And even if he never picks up another light saber, the role will always be a part of him.
Smith asked, “At this point, you could basically win a Grammy, cure cancer, and still forever you are going to be Luke Skywalker. Have you accepted that?”
“Yeah. Well, I don’t care,” Hamill said. “I mean, the truth of the matter is, I never really expected to be remembered for anything. I just wanted to make a living doing what I liked. And I thought, ‘Well, it could be worse. I could be, like, known as being the best actor who ever played Adolf Hitler, you know?’ At least Luke is an admirable fellow!”