The reactions from Star Wars fans to The Last Jedi have been so polarizing it has been impossible to discuss the film without being told why everything you think is wrong. And those constant, never-ending debates have been exhausting. But just as bad, they have prevented us from having the kind of nerd arguments we really want to engage in–ones about totally pointless minutiae. Fortunately for us, writer and director Rian Johnson is here for every online argument about the movie, both big and small, which is why he was more than happy to talk about something we hadn’t even considered: how did Luke’s robot hand join him as a Force ghost.
On Twitter a fan asked Johnson and Mark Hamill about a topic we didn’t even care about before, but now it’s the only thing we can think about: what’s the deal with Force ghosts and robotic/missing appendages? It turns out question Luke Skywalker wanted an answer, too.
Me too. Let me know if you get an answer.
— Mark Hamill (@MarkHamill) January 19, 2018
I am personally ashamed I didn’t think of this question myself. Johnson had an answer though.
https://twitter.com/rianjohnson/status/954470813540876288
It turns out it was a practical (and smart) choice for the good of the movie, as opposed to an in-universe one based on Force ghost protocol. Either way it’s awesome it was even considered. When Anakin Skywalker died he didn’t become a Force ghost immediately and his body was burned, so it wasn’t something we had to consider before.
But what about if/when we see Force ghost Luke in Episode IX? Will he have the robot hand? Probably not, since Anakin (both the original old version and the monstrosity that was Hayden Christensen’s version in the Special Editions) did not. He was back to normal. Although if Mark Hamill has his way, we might get way more of “normal” Luke than we want.
Hey @rianjohnson– Maybe Luke just transported to a Nudist Colony.#ThisTheoryWhichIsMineAndBelongsToMeHoweverLikelyOrUnlikelyImFineWithIX https://t.co/zNt9olUJFU
— Mark Hamill (@MarkHamill) January 20, 2018
What do you think? Should Luke’s robot hand have fallen to the ground, or was this the right call? Tell us why in the comments below.
Images: Lucasfilm
More Rian Johnson goodness!
- Johnson gets sassy with Last Jedi dissenters.
- He hints at deleted scenes.
- He names female directors he’d like to see helm Star Wars.
