Mark Hamill Thought Someone Else Was The Protagonist Of Star Wars
Mark Hamill thought that Harrison Ford's Han Solo was going to be the main character and hero in Star Wars
This article is more than 2 years old
Everyone knows that Luke Skywalker is the hero and protagonist of the original Star Wars trilogy — except Mark Hamill when he auditioned for the role. The actor partnered with Omaze to react to his first screen test with Harrison Ford and he revealed that he thought Han Solo was going to be the main character. To sum it up, Hamill remarked “Harrison was a bona fide leading man, so I thought he was Captain America, and I was Bucky.”
That’s certainly a fair assessment for Mark Hamill to make. At the time Hamill was more of an unknown property and Han Solo is the type of character that has “protagonist” written all over him. Of course, Hamill eventually got the script and saw that it would be Luke’s story instead.
It’s hard to imagine Luke Skywalker being anything but the protagonist of Star Wars now. It’s also hard to imagine anyone but Hamill in the role. It’s a good thing that George Lucas had such a clear vision for that original trilogy because it ended up being one of the most iconic media franchises of all time.
Who knows what Star Wars would be like if Harrison Ford’s Han Solo was the main character instead of Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker? There’s a good chance that the movie would have still become iconic, but Darth Vader’s entire redemption arc is dependent on Luke. If Han Solo was the main character, maybe it would have turned out more like Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Since playing the protagonist of the original Star Wars trilogy, Mark Hamill has reprised his role as Luke various times. We saw an older Luke Skywalker in the most recent Star Wars trilogy and witnessed the definitive end to his story. We’re also getting glimpses of Luke in prime Jedi form as visual effects and CGI are allowing Hamill to portray a younger version in shows like The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett.
While Mark Hamill was once the one and only main character of Star Wars, that is certainly no longer the case. There have been tons of Star Wars shows, movies, and books since then. The newest Star Wars show Andor features the eventual rebel leader Cassian Andor as the protagonist.
With Andor taking place before the events of Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope it seems unlikely that we’ll get to see Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker. Earlier this year, we got to see a younger Ben Kenobi in Obi-Wan Kenobi, as Obi-Wan stopped watching over the young Luke Skywalker to save a young Princess Leia. The show also featured the return of Hayden Christensen and James Earl Jones as Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader.
If we’re going to see Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker again, our best bet will probably be in The Mandalorian Season 3 or Ahsoka. Luke Skywalker was training the young Grogu in the ways of the Jedi before Grogu decided to return Din Djarin in The Book of Boba Fett. The Mandalorian returns in 2023, so we’ll have to wait and see if Luke Skywalker makes another appearance to help out Grogu and the Mandalorian on their adventures.
