How Jake Skywalker Caused Star Wars Speculation From Fans
If you’re a major Star Wars fan, you probably think you know all the Skywalkers…Luke, Anakin, and even Rey. However, as Yoda might say, there is another…that is if we listen to the franchise’s biggest star. At the height of his annoyance with The Last Jedi script, Mark Hamill said, “maybe he’s ‘Jake Skywalker,’ he’s not my Luke Skywalker,” a comment that fanned the flames of Sequel Trilogy hate while also leading to a weird theory among Star Wars fans.
The Last Jedi Broke Mark Hamill
When The Last Jedi first came out, it divided the fandom, and nobody seemed more divided than Hamill himself. This was the movie where Luke initially refused to train Rey and then eventually revealed that he had turned his back on the Jedi completely, in part because they were chumps who got so easily played by Darth Sidious. This was a far cry from the optimistic Jedi and hero of the Rebellion from the original trilogy, which is why Hamill invented the idea of Jake Skywalker.
Hamill Has Walked Back His Criticism
Getting with the Disney-approved program, Mark Hamill has since apologized for criticizing The Last Jedi, later tweeting that “I regret voicing my doubts and insecurities in public” and that “creative differences are a common element of any project but usually remain private.” This was a very different tone from when he invented the idea of Jake Skywalker and claimed that “I had to do what Rian [Johnson, director] wanted me to do.”
Despite the apology, Sequel Trilogy haters still point to Hamill’s initial criticism as proof that their annoyance with how these later films treated the original characters was completely justified.
The Jake Skywalker Theory
Taking things to the next level, some fans (both those who are disgruntled and those who are simply curious) began speculating that “Jake Skywalker” might be more than just a hypothetical construct on Mark Hamill’s part. For example, some believe the real Luke Skywalker is still in hiding and that the one we saw in the film is an imperfect clone of the real thing.
This is meant to explain why he would initially be tempted to kill Ben Solo (this is admittedly out of character for Luke) and later refuse to train an eager new Jedi apprentice (which seemed even more out of character).
A Clone Grown From His Severed Hand
According to the Jake Skywalker believers, this theory would also contextualize Maz Kanata’s otherwise unexplained line from The Force Awakens that the tale of how she ended up with Luke’s lightsaber is “a good story, for another time.” Fans who believe this clone theory believe Luke would have been cloned by the Resistance after retrieving the severed hand and saber after the events of The Empire Strikes Back.
This is similar to Timothy Zahn’s EU story The Last Command, which had mad clone Jedi Joruus C’baoth created an evil clone of Luke from that same hand and arming him with that same saber.
Jake Skywalker Isn’t Real And He Can’t Hurt You
That means that, for all its faults and inconsistencies, the Jake Skywalker theory is partially grounded by one of the best Star Wars stories ever written. That doesn’t mean the character is real or that he’ll ever come back. Of course, if the solo Rey movie has a line like “somehow, Jake Skywalker returned,” it would still pale in comparison to the general stupidity of the Sequel Trilogy.
