While Star Wars: The Force Awakens got a lot right, it was far from a perfect film. Among other things, one of the biggest complaints lodged against it was that it borrowed far too much thematically from previous entries in the saga, most notably A New Hope. We loved what J.J. Abrams did just as much as the next fan, but we can’t deny that it did feel pretty similar to what we’d already seen from the franchise. And though that in no way ruined the viewing experience, at least not for us, it’s still nice to hear that Star Wars: The Last Jedi is going to be very different.
There’s also been another criticism lodged against the film though by a few people, including one of its stars, Mark Hamill. Actually, star probably isn’t the right word, given that the iconic actor only shows up at the very end and didn’t even get to speak. Still, he’s set to play a huge role in The Last Jedi and while reflecting on The Force Awakens, Hamill told Fandango that there was a “great missed opportunity” in the sequel.
He’s referring to a reunion between Luke Skywalker and Han Solo, and mentioned that if he had it his way, it would have been Luke and Leia there to watch Han die, not Finn and Rey, since that would have helped “carry much emotional resonance into the next film.”
“When I was reading [the script] I thought, if Leia was trying to mentally contact me and she’s unsuccessful, she’ll rush to his aid,” said Hamill. “She’ll get close to him, get into some dire situation and that’s when I show up for a big ‘YAY!“, save her life, then we rush to Han and are in the same position that Rey and Finn and Chewie are. But we’re too late to save him but still witness it. That carries so much [more] emotional resonance into the next film for his wife and his best friend, instead of two kids that have known him for what…20 minutes?”
Hamill does have a point here. A Skywalker/Solo reunion, especially in a moment like this, would have made for a powerful scene. Obviously, that would have completely ruined the cliffhanger ending where Rey tracks down Luke on Ahch-To, but still, it’s a shame that the two iconic characters didn’t get to share the screen one final time. Don’t you think?
Tell us, are you happy with the way Han’s death was handled in Star Wars: The Force Awakens? Or do you agree with Hamill in that it should have been Leia and Luke by his side instead of Rey and Finn? Sound off below with your thoughts!