Mark Hamill and Daisy Ridley Talk Luke and Rey in 'The Last Jedi'

By: Dominic Jones

One of the big questions going into Star Wars: The Last Jedi is what was Luke Skywalker doing during the events of The Force Awakens.  We got a brief glimpse of what Luke's headspace is in the trailer when he says, "I only know on truth, it's time for the Jedi to end."  In Entertainment Weekly's continuing coverage of The Last Jedi this week, Senior Editor Anthony Breznican got to explore this further with Mark Hamill and Daisy Ridley

Apparently, Luke will be somewhat dismissive of Rey at first, which Ridley says will be confusing to the young Jedi hopeful.  She went on compared Rey's perception of Luke to her experience with Han in The Force Awakens, describing Rey's reaction to Luke as being,

"'Oh my God, this other man that I lost within a couple days was somewhat of a father figure. Now he’s gone, and instead I’m with this grumpy guy on an island who doesn’t want me here.'"

Hamill explained that the reason Luke is hidden away on this island has to do with the much-speculated upon backstory about Ben Solo falling to the dark side and becoming Kylo Ren--despite Luke's tutelage.  Hamill told EW,

"[Luke] made a huge mistake in thinking that his nephew was the chosen one, so he invested everything he had in Kylo, much like Obi-Wan did with my character. And he is betrayed, with tragic consequences. Luke feels responsible for that. That’s the primary obstacle he has to rejoining the world and his place in the Jedi hierarchy, you know? It’s that guilt, that feeling that it’s his fault, that he didn’t detect the darkness in him until it was too late."

It's interesting to see the term "chosen one" pop up again.  Much of the prequel trilogy centered around the prophecy that Anakin Skywalker was the chosen one who would bring balance to the Force.  It seems Luke thought that his nephew had the same potential, only to see him suffer a similar fate to his father. 

This failure weighs heavily on Luke, who now seems to think of himself as someone who could not live up to his own expectations and the expectations of those around him.  Hamill expanded on this, saying,

"I think he probably looks out on the horizon and wishes that he could be more effective, could be what Obi-Wan wanted him to be. But life is imperfect and without conflict there is no drama. Believe me, you’re going to see a lot of conflict in The Last Jedi. That is for sure."

You can read the entire feature on Luke and Rey here.

Catch up on the EW The Last Jedi Coverage:
>> The Last Jedi Covers
>> New The Last Jedi Stills
>> John Boyega and Kelly Marie Tran on Finn and Rose
>> Mark Hamill and Daisy Ridley on Luke and Rey
>> Rian Johnson on The Creatures and Secrets of Ach-To
>> Rian Johnson on Snoke and his elite Praetorian guards

Star Wars: Episode VIII The Last Jedi hits theaters on December 15th.  The film is written and directed by Rian Johnson and stars Daisy Ridley, Mark Hamill, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Carrie Fisher, Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern, Benicio Del Toro, and Lupita Nyong'o. 

Source: Entertainment Weekly

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