Credit: LucasfilmDisney’s Star Wars sequel trilogy is being rewritten one project at a time, and the latest franchise update signals a big shift in Luke Skywalker’s legacy.
Disney picked up Lucasfilm back in 2012. Three years later, fans would return to the franchise created by George Lucas with Star Wars: Episode VII — The Force Awakens (2015), directed by J.J. Abrams. Featuring a new cast of characters, including Daisy Ridley’s Rey, John Boyega’s Finn, and Adam Driver’s Kylo Ren, Disney’s Star Wars movie debut also saw the return of legacy actors Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher as Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Leia Organa, respectively.
The Force Awakens was well-received, but two years later, Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: Episode VIII — The Last Jedi (2017) would change the fandom forever. The divided reaction to The Last Jedi saw Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy bring back Abrams to helm the third and final movie in the trilogy, Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker (2019).
One major point of contention with the completed sequel trilogy is its apparent lack of direction. First, it was Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis), then in a surprise turn of events, Johnson had Kylo Ren kill off Snoke in The Last Jedi, leaving the door open for Emperor Palpatine to return in The Rise of Skywalker. This major addition sent shockwaves through the fandom, and ever since its release, Star Wars has been retroactively feeding fans information that contextualizes Snoke’s creation and Palpatine’s return.
The latest update corroborates a previously held theory that Luke Skywalker inadvertently created Supreme Leader Snoke. In one of the most famous scenes in cinematic history, Darth Vader (David Prowse/James Earl Jones) reveals that he is the father of young Jedi Luke Skywalker shortly after slicing off his hand in Star Wars: Episode V — The Empire Strikes Back (1980).
Over the years, Luke’s disembodied hand has been the source of many theories and, in the canon universe, has been suggested to be what helped in Palpatine’s cloning experiments. The descent from Jedi to Sith is what the Star Wars franchise has been exploring for over four decades, and back in 2021, Marvel Comics released “Darth Vader #12,” which revealed the reprehensible reason Vader took his son’s hand: to give him pain and make him feel hatred. And as pointed out in that same issue, hatred is what gives the Sith their power.
Prior to this, in the eleventh issue of “Darth Vader,” the former Jedi visited Palpatine on Exegol–another example of feeding in sequel trilogy information earlier in the timeline–and it was revealed that Palpatine had recovered Luke’s hand from Bespin, but it was his words that proved most curious. “I used it to make all of these things,” Palpatine told his apprentice. “I can use it to make anything.” Immediately, it became clear that Star Wars was hinting at the creation of Palpatine’s clones, and maybe even Snoke, in the era of the First Order.
There have been elements of Palpatine’s cloning experiments littered throughout Dave Filoni’s recent Star Wars series, The Bad Batch. Mount Tantiss has been a staple location of the show ever since it was introduced in the final moments of the first season–Tantiss was originally part of the Star Wars Expanded Universe and was a place where Palpatine kept his cloning facility.
But, as ScreenRant points out, this theory of Luke’s hand being used to create Supreme Leader Snoke and essentially rewrite the context of Disney’s sequel trilogy turns more concrete when examining the 43rd issue of “Star Wars” from Marvel Comics.
“Luke Skywalker has metaphysically traveled into a red kyber crystal and is being held captive by the sentient memory of the Sith who originally bled the crystal,” writes ScreenRant. “While Luke willingly throws his essence into an object of concentrated dark side in order to heal it, the Sith within the crystal is also trying to turn Luke towards their ways in the Force – and nearly succeeds.”
In this scene, the Sith that seduces Luke points out that pain is a powerful tool in the Force, highlighting how his severed hand will always be part of his history. Luke considers the notion and then taps into that power to escape his prison. This connection between Luke using his pain to gain strength in the Force directly ties into the aforementioned storylines regarding pain as a way to become a Sith and the evolution of Palpatine’s cloning experiments.
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One other thing here is that in the former Expanded Universe, Luke’s hand is used to create a clone called Luuke Skywalker. What if Luuke is never coming to the canon Star Wars franchise because he was essentially already here? What if Supreme Leader Snoke is Lucasfilm’s take on an evil Luke Skywalker?
In late 2021, Star Wars fans gained more knowledge regarding the creation of Supreme Leader Snoke. In Marc Sumerak’s book, “Secrets of the Sith” (2021), Palpatine–who narrates the book– reveals the truth about Snoke.
“My new body’s deformities were severe. Unable to leave Exegol, I would have to spread my influence across the galaxy through less direct means. As part of their genetic experiments, my followers had attempted to create another being that came to be known as Snoke,” the book reads.
It continues to share why and how Palpatine used Snoke in the First Order:
“Although his body proved unworthy of containing my dark essence, Snoke’s natural sensitivity to the Force would make him a powerful puppet nonetheless. Through my manipulation of Snoke, I began gathering forces, building an army capable of opposing the New Republic that had risen in my absence. Through Snoke, I would make certain that the First Order would be mine to control.”
While there is nothing here about Luke Skywalker, it does seem that Star Wars is baiting fans with something. After all, Luke’s hand keeps cropping up–rather like Palpatine himself.
As Star Wars: The Bad Batch moves through its final season, more answers may become available. Looking towards the future, Disney has three more Star Wars movies lined up between 2025 and 2027. The first can be expected to be The Mandalorian & Grogu (2025) from Jon Favreau.
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Following the Mando movie event, it’s less clear as to what direction Lucasfilm will take. Information regarding the Rey Skywalker film has ramped up. Loosely called Star Wars: New Jedi Order, the next sequel-era movie will be directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy and include Daisy Ridley’s Rey as she rebuilds the Jedi Order. The actress recently commented on how her Jedi Master character would be different from Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker.
In a surprising move, it has also been shared that the once defunct Rogue Squadron movie from Patty Jenkins is back on the slate at Lucasfilm.
Do you think Luke’s dark side powers are what created Supreme Leader Snoke? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!