Hamill says Fisher was meant to still be a force in ‘Star Wars’
Carrie Fisher’s death has left a void in a galaxy far, far away, as well as our very own.
The beloved actress/writer, who died last December at age 60, reprises her role of princess-turned-general Leia Organa in Star Wars: The Last Jedi (in theaters Dec. 15), the franchise’s eighth installment.
But according to Mark Hamill, who plays Luke Skywalker in the sci-fi saga, her character was meant to be an even larger part of the action in Star Wars: Episode IX (out Dec. 20, 2019), which has a new director in J.J. Abrams.
“You’re going to really love her in ( The Last Jedi),” Hamill said at a fan event at New York Comic Con Saturday night. “I know they’re going to try to find a way to close her story in (episode) 9 that gives her the respect she deserves, because (Han Solo) was more prominent in 7 ( The Force Awakens), Luke’s a little more prominent in 8, and certainly Leia was meant to be more prominent in 9.
“Worldwide, everyone feels that gap she left,” Hamill said. “But we all have to hang in there.”
Earlier, Hamill got emotional while discussing his longtime friend and co-star, whose mother, screen legend Debbie Reynolds, died one day after Fisher from an intracerebral hemorrhage at age 84. They are survived by Fisher’s daughter, actress Billie Lourd, who described their deaths as “surreal and impossible to deal with” in an interview with Ellen DeGeneres last month.
“Ordinarily, (Carrie’s) timing was exquisite, but in this case, it’s heartbreakingly difficult to even acknowledge the loss,” Hamill said. “And I’m selfish about it. I talk about, ‘Oh, she would’ve made things so much more fun.’ But think about what Billie’s going through. Not only to lose her mom, but the very next day, her grandmother? It’s just unimaginable.”
Otherwise, Hamill mostly steered away from Star Wars in his two-hour onstage talk at Manhattan’s Hammerstein Ballroom, instead choosing to reminisce about his childhood, his voice work as The Joker in the Batman animated series and his role as The Trickster in The Flash.
But the actor did tease a more cynical, downbeat Luke in the upcoming Last Jedi, which fans caught a glimpse of in a first trailer for the movie released in April.
“No one just wants to see a retread of Obi-Wan Kenobi,” Hamill said. “We’ve seen the benevolent Jedi master training people.”
In the trailer, “Luke says, ‘I only know one truth: It’s time for the Jedi to end.’ You haven’t figured out what Luke’s been doing for 30 years, ( but) how does the most optimistic character in all the movies get to that point? It won’t be much longer now until you find out.”