There are many ideas how to bring the original cast from Star Wars (1977) to the new Star Wars movies, but these make the most sense.
Above Image: Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983) Han Solo (Harrison Ford), C-3PO (Anthony Daniels), Princess Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher), Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew)
We don’t know what the plot of Star Wars VII will be, but most reports
suggest that Lucasfilm is going to bring Han Solo, Luke Skywalker,
and Leia Organa into the next trilogy. The new films will focus on the
next generation of Solo and Skywalker children, but bring back the geriatric heroes we’ve grown to love. Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker said, “They’re talking to us. George [Lucas] wanted to know whether we’d be interested. He did say that if we didn’t want to do it,
they wouldn’t cast another actor in our parts—they would write us out.” Screen Rant said, “Considering modern remakes of retro TV shows and films are all the rage these days, direct ties to the original Star Wars trilogy could re-energize less-impassioned viewers who might have been under whelmed by the prequel trilogy.”
I know lots of people have suggested going to the “Expanded Universe” of books and games for Star Wars character development, but I say there’s enough material in the original films to make a rich character back story. I’ve read a few of the books, but I’m not impressed. Most diverge wildly from the original films and some are just terrible. No, I’m not talking about Timothy Zahn’s “Heir to the Empire.
So, let’s assume that the original cast is returning to the films. What should their characters be like?
1. Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill)
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| Star Wars Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) |
The one guy we all want to see in the prequels is Luke Skywalker. While he says he won’t do it without the others without him we won’t watch the movie. Luke was raised the son of a farmer, but he is descended from a master Jedi and soldier. He was taught the ways of the force by Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, but his training only went so far. We see force ghosts of them at the end of Return of the Jedi, so why couldn’t they complete his training? After all, Obi-Wan was still giving him flying tips after he died. In fact, we see Anakin too, so why couldn’t he return to help him as well? Anakin could teach him that trick with the two lightsabers and how to pick up older women.
After 30 years of training himself in the ways of the force, we have to assume he’s become a grandmaster of the force, and a master needs an apprentice. In the new films he should be on a quest for a new apprentice. This could easily tie into whatever new characters are created for the films. Sure he’s an old man with dyed hair, but remember thanks to CGI, Count Dooku (Christopher Lee) was a formidable enemy in his seventies. They could easily make Mark Hamill a Jedi master and swordfighter. Plus, he should wear Anakin’s robe. He looks better in black.
2. Princess Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher)
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| Star Wars Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) |
Unfortunately, the years and generous plastic surgery haven’t been kind
to Carrie Fisher. But she’s still a beautiful woman and her spunk and energy
will live on. The movies wouldn’t be the same without her.
Leia is the daughter of a famous queen and senator. She was raised by Jimmy Smits…I mean Senator Bail Organa. When we meet her in A New Hope she’s on a diplomatic mission to Alderaan. Politics are in her blood.
No doubt The Galactic Senate is reinstated after the Empire is overthrown and she should become Supreme Chancellor, head of the new Galactic Senate. Maybe not the whole time, but definitely when we see her 30 years later. Maybe she’s up for re-election.
That life of politics probably wouldn’t sit well with the life of a free-wheeling drifter like Han Solo, which means their relationship will probably be strained. This leads to my most controversial idea.
3. Han Solo (Harrison Ford)
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| Star Wars Han Solo (Harrison Ford) |
Han Solo is a loner and a rebel. Sure, by the end of Return of the Jedi he settled down with Leia, but could he ever really settle down? Solo should get married to Leia, but somewhere along the way, separate from her. When we pick up with him thirty years later he’s traveling the galaxy as a trader in the Millennium Falcon.
The story should be about the two of them finding love again. It would open up lots of opportunity for the verbal sparring and tension between them. In the expanded universe, the two have children. I think Solo is above being a deadbeat bad, so let’s assume he either never had kids or left after they grew up.
This is the perfect way to bring his character back without compromising the things we love about Solo. Harrison Ford hasn’t been confirmed to be on board, but /Film reported that Harrison Ford will return as Han Solo in Star Wars Episode VII.
They could even write in a cantankerous personality to match Ford’s real-life personality as a cranky old Star Wars hater. Imagine him making fun of midi-chlorians. We hate them too.
4. Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew)
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| Star Wars Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) |
Chewbacca, played by Peter Mayhew, is a loyal friend and powerful warrior. No doubt he stayed close to Han all these years. When we meet him again he’s still by Han’s side, although he’d probably go back to Kashyyyk for a while to raise a family and check on his relatives every “Life Day”.
When we see him years later, maybe he’s let his son take over as mechanic of the Millennium Falcon while he teaches him the ropes. Peter Mayhew uses a cane to walk now, but that can be fixed with clever editing or explaining that he got hurt in a gunfight.
The “Walking Carpet” must return.
5. C-3PO (Anthony Daniels)
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| Star Wars C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) |
C-3PO was built as a protocol droid and an expert on human-cyborg relations. He is fluent in “over six million forms of communication”.
Threepio’s
main skills are assisting with etiquette, customs, and language translation.
Sure, Anakin rebuilt him to help around the house, but he was never good at that anyway. When we meet Threepio later he should be helping Leia in the Galactic Senate as her top adviser. Actor Anthony Daniels doesn’t have to wear the suit anymore, but he’ll need to do the voice. It wouldn’t be the same without him.
6. Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Wiliams)
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| Star Wars Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Wiliams) |
Solo said, “He’s a card player, gambler, scoundrel.” But that’s not all. Lando is a leader, ladies man, politician and general. When we first meet him in Empire Strikes Back he’s a former pirate and administrator of Cloud City. In Return of the Jedi he becomes a general leading the Rebel forces.
What would be next for this man of power and nobility? Would he go back to being a criminal? Not likely. I say he’d become an Admiral and military commander of the Galactic Senate’s Armed Forces. After that auspicious career, he retires from the military and we find him back on Cloud City relaxing with his beautiful wife and children. That’s the way Billy Dee Williams would roll in the new Star Wars.
So, what about other characters like R2-D2 (Kenny Baker), Yoda (Frank Oz) and Obi-Wan Kenobi? I dunno. Frankly, they don’t interest me much, but they can easily be brought back.
How would you like to see the Star Wars characters return?
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<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="38355 ">14 Comments
Some of the characters are dead, so they'd have to come back as 'ghosts.' If they use any of the old cast, it should be sparingly. Although Ford could pull it off.
This is a thought-provoking (or is that daydream-provoking) post! Although I like your ideas, I agree with Alex on this one. I think they should be brought back sparingly – and hopefully Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, C3PO, and R2D2 would be back. I think it would be best if the movie came off as an original, although I actually like some of the Star Wars spin off books, I think it's more exciting if it could be something new and fitting with the original movies. I'm still having a tough time with Disney buying Lucasfilms . . .I keep imagining Luke singing "A Whole New World" or "I wish I could be part of their world" while standing and looking at the horizon on Tatooine, which would be just wrong. I like Disney. I like Star Wars. I just think it's odd to think of the mix.
I don't think you need all of them or even most of them. Just Luke would suffice like in the Star Trek reboot Abrams did where he had Nimoy do a cameo as alternate universe Spock. It's funny now thanks to the stupid prequels 3PO and R2D2 will be like 70 or so. If only my toaster could last that long!
Old Han Solo would be a pretty ideal Han Solo, the one who would really emphasize the passage of time. I've found Harrison Ford to be increasingly interesting as an actor the older he gets, even in his action roles, which he still does better than his '80s peers. Luke would probably now be something like the Jedi council of the prequels, an adviser much like how he found Yoda.
I'd like to see Han as the Jedi Master, that Luke converted him. 🙂 That would amuse me.
I'm glad you liked it Tyrean. I hope they focus on new characters too, but Star Wars needs to answer the question of "where are they now?" Disney + Star Wars = Twilight Zone
Ford is a fascinating actor and Luke would definitely take on a leadership role.
You could just do Luke Pat, but he said he didn't want to do it without the others. I admire him for that.
I was thinking about the force ghosts too Alex. Obi-wan could come back digitally.
but who is the protagonist though? assuming the empire and sith was wiped out, who is there left to deal with? ok, so they go back and get rid of all the gungans, but they were mostly just annoying anyhow… i think we may see history repeat itself again, as Luke unknowily works his way towards the dark side (much like anakin did in the episode II and III), taking on a apprentice and reforming the sith lords. i dont really like this own idea of mine, but i also cant really see any other protagonist in a star wars movie than the sith, and since we at this time only have one force user left (Luke) what other options are there? i dont think introducing a new super-jedi-turn-sith-lord would fly, since that type of power would surly have been recognized in the earlier movies. who would have trained this new sith guy? nha, the protagonist needs to be one of the existing characters, and sadly i only see Luke (or possibly his apprentice) as the bad boy.
A great question Nisse and one I hadn't thought of. Its possible Darth Vader was training another Sith lord before Luke, but I like your idea of making Luke turn to the dark side.
This would be a fun idea… I could show my son what it means to grow old gracefully – depending on which characters came back 🙂
Pretty sure that's not Carrie Fisher in that "now" photo.
Good question Beej! She looks vastly different, but I got it from Hollywood Reporter http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/carrie-fisher-shows-50-pound-227229 I'm sure you're not the first one to ask, so thanks for asking the question.