Luke Skywalker is a main character in the Star Wars franchise. He was the protagonist of the original trilogy and one of the secondary protagonists in the sequel trilogy. Finding himself apprenticed to the Jedi Masters, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, he soon becomes an important figure in the Rebel Alliance's struggle against the Galactic Empire. In The Force Awakens, he is the Grand Master of the New Jedi Order and the sole existing Jedi until in The Last Jedi, his new apprentice, Rey, assumes the mantle after his death.
Background
Development
In early drafts of the Star Wars story, Luke Skywalker's role of farmboy-turned-Jedi hero was filled by Annikin Starkiller, a character who combined the traits of Luke and Prequel-era Anakin Skywalker. The name Starkiller was changed to "Skywalker", which had less violent connotations, late in the script's development. "Starkiller" later became the nickname of Darth Vader's secret apprentice, Galen Marek, in the video game The Force Unleashed. The name of Starkiller would also later be used for the superweapon appearing in The Force Awakens.
Personality
Luke was resourceful, selfless, and brave, but was known to be impulsive, much like his father, Anakin Skywalker, of course, like his father, he had a sense of justice, honor, and good morals. From his parents, Luke shares his rebelliousness and compassion with them, but as opposed to his sister, Leia Organa, he had the ability to see the good in others and he is not a very good liar.
After losing his right hand to Darth Vader, Luke became far more calm, level-headed, and patient, despite the fact that he now had far better control over his emotions and temper, than his father did in his youth, Luke still has his moments of losing his patience and temper.
As a Jedi, Luke is highly intelligent and wise, unlike most Jedi, he was not short-sighted; this is evidenced by the fact that when he discovered the Jedi Archives and tried to restore the Jedi Order to it's former glory (prior to the Jedi massacre) he realized that the old Jedi teachings as well as the old code were flawed, and to avoid the New Jedi Order from making the same mistakes as the Old Jedi Order - Luke altered some of the Jedi teachings and code.
After Luke's nephew, Ben Solo and some of his other apprentices, betrayed him, and destroyed his New Jedi Order (due to the fact that Ben discovered that Luke was tempted to kill him, because he was afraid of his nephew's stronger connection to the Dark side of the Force is) Luke became embittered and guilt-riddled, deeply grieving his failure and chose to exile himself to the planet Ahch-To, seeing the Jedi's legacy as a failure, Luke intended to die where the Jedi began to forever end the Jedi.
Luke (apparently) became somewhat apathetic as he chose not to assist the Resistance just because he desired to remain in exile, despite the fact that he knew fully of the importance of the defeat of the First Order, he also became more stubborn, as evidenced by Rey failing to convince him to aid the Rebellion and teach her, taking him hearing Obi Wan's old recording to teach her the ways of the Force, even then, it was only 3 lessons. He also became explosive when angered, evidenced when he destroyed his hut in his anger of seeing Rey and Ren holding hands.
Luke became more cautious in training others with tremendous levels of force powers, evidenced when he refused to teach Rey as her force powers is equal to that of Ren's, he had believed that there is no hope for those who had fallen to the Dark side, evidenced when he blatantly told Rey that Ren was lost.
However, after Yoda managed to convince him of what he truly needed, Luke ultimately chose to assist the Resistance and showed remorse for his failures when meeting Leia and later confronting Ren, He willingly sacrificed himself for the Jedi and Resistance to survive, and died peacefully after seeing Ahch-To's twin suns descent into the horizon for the last time; making peace with his fate and forgiving himself for his failures.
Luke realized that his failure wasn't for training Ben in the ways of the Force and lightsaber combat, his failure was for not trusting his nephew and believing in his inner goodness; as he apologized to Ben for failing him.
Powers and abilities
Powers
- Power of the Force: As the son of the Chosen One, Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, Luke was immensely powerful and had an amazingly strong connection to the Force, stronger than any Force-user currently alive; his force powers rivaled that of even his father, Anakin at his peak. By the time of the events of The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi respectively, Luke's force powers had greatly increased to the point where he had (genuinely) become a threat to Snoke, the Knights of Ren, and the First Order respectively.
- Telekinesis: Luke utilized Telekinesis for either offense or defense. By the time of the Battle of Jakku, Luke was so proficient with telekinesis; that he said to have pulled Imperial star destroyers out of the sky single-handedly.
- Force Push: Luke utilized Force Push to send his opponents flying through the air, causing them serious injury or temporarily incapacitating them/knocked them unconscious.
- Force Pull: Luke utilized Force Pull to pull his opponents or objects towards him.
- Force Choke: Luke utilized Force Choke to either weaken, kill or intimidate his opponents.
- Mind Trick: Luke utilized Mind Trick to control the minds of other sentient beings, however, it did not work on individuals who have very strong wills.
- Force Vision: Luke utilized Force Vision to have visions of the past, the present, and the future. However, like all Force-users, his visions were not always clear or sometimes had visions even when he was not utilizing this power at will.
- Force Sense: Luke utilized Force Sense to sense another sentient being's emotions, the future, ripples in the Force caused by momentous or traumatic events, impending danger, and the presence of the dark side; his senses were so powerful, that he could sense the presence of his father, Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader on Endor.
- Mind Probe: Luke utilized Mind Probe to sense and sift through the thoughts of a sentient being. This allowed him to scan the mind of a sleeping Ben Solo to discover that Snoke had been corrupting him with the dark side of the Force, sensing that the boy would go on to become a force for evil in the near future.
- Force Rage: Luke utilized Force Rage to channel his anger to increase his speed, strength, and ferocity. This allowed him to defeat his conflicted father in their final battle, though he nearly succumbed to the Dark side because of it.
- Force Jump: Luke utilized Force Jump to leap or jump at great distances.
- Force Dash: Luke utilized Force Dash to move at amazing speeds.
- Force Projection: Luke had the ability to create an illusion of himself that could be manifested all the way across the galaxy. During Kylo Ren's assault on Crait to destroy the Resistance, Luke used this power to distract his nephew long enough to allow the Resistance and Rey to escape. However, the effort it took to manifest such an illusion from such a distance took a tremendous toll on his body, which proved too much to bear and caused Luke to become one with the Force.
- Force Spirit: Due to his immensely powerful connection to the Force and the ancient knowledge of the Jedi at his disposal, Luke was able to transcend physical death and preserve his identity through the Force. This allowed him to become one with the Force when he was killed by the strain of projecting himself across the galaxy to distract Kylo Ren to allow the Resistance on Crait to escape the First Order.
- Telekinesis: Luke utilized Telekinesis for either offense or defense. By the time of the Battle of Jakku, Luke was so proficient with telekinesis; that he said to have pulled Imperial star destroyers out of the sky single-handedly.
- Immense Reflexes: Luke had impressive reflexes that were above that of ordinary Force-users; his reflexes were superior to most, if not all members of the New Jedi Order. During the "Battle of Crait"; despite his old age, Luke was able to dodge several of Ren's lightsaber strikes (albeit as a force projection) despite his nephew being much younger than him.
Abilities
- Lightsaber Skills: Despite his minimal level of training, Luke is highly skilled in lightsaber combat and an exceptionally gifted duelist. Luke was proven to have a natural affinity for lightsaber combat; after only one brief session with Obi-Wan Kenobi, he was able to hold his own against his father Anakin Skywalker, the then-ruthless Sith Lord Darth Vader, a far more skilled and experienced opponent, on three separate occasions. In the first fight, although a relatively short confrontation, his skill proved inadequate and he was defeated with ease. However, in the second fight, which took place roughly four years later, Luke had greatly improved his technique and he was able to hold his own for much of the duel, even managing to lightly wound Vader's right shoulder. However, ultimately Vader once again proved superior and Luke lost the fight, as well as his lightsaber and right hand. In their final duel on the second Death Star, Luke was finally able to overwhelm and defeat Vader, though with extreme effort. Thanks to Yoda's tutelage, Luke also uses his Force powers to not only increase his physical speed and agility, but to also increase the speed of his attacks as well as to make his lightsaber combat skills more lethal in combat; this makes him a formidable opponent alone in single combat. Before he received much training, he relied on his Force sense and his reflexes to use the blade. As revealed in the canonical story Showdown on Smuggler's Moon, during his tenure as a prisoner of the Jedi-obsessed Grakkus the Hutt, his skills were also inadvertently aided by Vader's spy, the stormtrooper and lightsaber combat expert Sergeant Kreel who masqueraded as Grakkus' gamemaster in an attempt to lure Luke into being captured by Vader. It is likely his skills and knowledge increased further after finding the hidden cave filled with Jocasta Nu's Holocrons, as shown in the final scene in Marvel Comics' Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith: The Dying Light- Part IV. By the time of the events of The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi respectively, Luke's skills in lightsaber combat had greatly improved to the point of mastery; as evidenced by the fact how he easily disarmed Rey, when she attacked him out of disgust, after learning from Ben that Luke made an attempt on the latter's life. If Luke had actually been present on Crait; he most definitely would have been able to defeat Ben Solo in lightsaber combat, as compared to his hot-headed nephew, he was the superior lightsaber duelist. It was also likely that Luke was one of the best, if not the best lightsaber duelist in the entire New Jedi Order; prior to the "Jedi massacre".
- Form V: At first, Luke only had some skills in Shien/Djem So. Within only four years' time since picking up a lightsaber during the events leading to the Battle of Yavin, Luke's skills with Form V eventually improved to the point where he was able to face Darth Vader on equal terms and eventually defeat him.
- Jar'Kai: Luke had some skills in Jar'Kai.
- Expert Hand-To-Hand Combatant: Luke was highly skilled in unarmed combat.
- Expert Marksman: Luke was highly skilled in utilizing blaster pistols.
- Expert Pilot: Much like his father, Anakin, Luke was extremely skilled in piloting various speeders and most types of flying crafts.
- Genius-Level Intellect/Master Tactician/Leader: Much like his father, Anakin, Luke was amazingly intelligent and wise; his intelligence and wisdom rivaled that of even Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, Yoda, and Palpatine respectively. As a Jedi Commander and the leader of the New Jedi Order, Luke was a highly skilled tactician and a very capable leader.
- Intimidation: As an immensely powerful Force-user, Luke commended an intimidating presence to the point where many of his enemies across the galaxy feared him, even exceptionally powerful Force-users; such as Yoda, Palpatine, Snoke, and Ben Solo respectively were terrified of him.
- Multilingual: Luke was capable of fluently speaking Basic, Huttese, Jawa Trade language, Shyriiwook, and Yuzz. He also claims to know twelve other common languages.
Weapons and Equipment
As a valued member of the Rebel Alliance; Luke possesses an array of weapons and equipment to assist him along the way.
Lightsabers
As a Jedi; Luke's valued weapon and possession are his blue and green-bladed lightsabers. So far he has had two lightsabers. Luke's first lightsaber is made out of Solid Heavy-Duty metal and Black alloy, well his second lightsaber is made out of Chrome metal and Black alloy.
- First Lightsaber: Upon arriving at Obi-Wan Kenobi's home on Tatooine, the elder Jedi Master gave Luke the lightsaber used by his father, Anakin Skywalker. The weapon was indeed the one that Obi-Wan took from Anakin after the intense fight on Mustafar. During his fight with Darth Vader on Bespin, Luke lost both his lightsaber and his hand. However, it resurfaced on Jakku and ended up in the possession of Maz Kanata, Finn, and then Rey. This weapon is powered by a blue Kyber crystal. It was later presented to Luke by Rey as a sign he was needed once again.
- Second Lightsaber: After losing his father's lightsaber on Bespin, Luke eventually returned home to Tatooine, where he not only planned to rescue Han Solo, but also to return to Obi-Wan's abandoned hut on Tatooine and construct a new lightsaber. His new lightsaber was based on his first mentor's weapon. After completing the weapon, he placed it in R2-D2. The weapon was seen throughout all of Return of the Jedi, and Luke used it throughout his life. Unlike it's predecessor, this lightsaber has a thick green blade that is powered by a Kyber crystal. Luke lost his lightsaber after Ben Solo attacked him and later destroyed his Jedi Temple.
Blaster
- Model 57 blaster pistol: Before completely utilizing the lightsaber as his weapon of choice; Luke used a Model 57 blaster pistol, a weapon similar to Han Solo's DL-44 heavy blaster pistol, along with his pilot uniform. This weapon was never seen again after The Empire Strikes Back.
Film Appearances
Revenge of the Sith
Luke and his sister, Leia are born mere hours after his father, Darth Vader (formerly Anakin Skywalker) was defeated by Obi-Wan Kenobi on Mustafar. His mother, Padmé Amidala is heartbroken at Anakin's turn to the dark side, and dies after giving birth to them. On Yoda's consent, Luke is sent to live with his step-uncle Owen Lars and his wife, Beru Whitesun, whilst his sister is sent to Senator Bail Organa for safety on Alderaan.
A New Hope
Luke spends nineteen years on Tatooine with Owen and Beru, who tell him that his father is a navigator on a spice freighter who died. One day, he and Owen go to get some droids to help on their farm from a Jawa sandcrawler passing through their area, and they pick a protocol droid called C-3PO and an astromech droid. The astromech droid, however, malfunctions, and C-3PO recommends his astromech friend R2-D2. Later on that night, while cleaning R2-D2, Luke finds a message that shows Princess Leia Organa requesting the help of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Luke wonders if she meant Ben Kenobi, a hermit who lives near the Dune Sea in the Jundland Wastes. He asks his uncle and aunt about it, but they refuse to talk about it, possibly after being told by Obi-Wan of Anakin's fall to the Dark Side when he first left Luke with them years ago. Luke goes out and looks at the two suns of Tatooine as they set on the horizon.
Luke watching the Binary Sunset.
The next day, Luke finds that R2 had left overnight, and he and 3PO go out to find him, having chosen not to pursue him after dark with all the Tusken Raiders prowling after nightfall. They find him near a camp of Sandpeople, and while Luke is getting a closer look, he is attacked by one. He is saved by a man in robes who frightens the Sandpeople scavenging his landspeeder away, and then recognizes him as Ben Kenobi, who had rescued him and Biggs Darklighter a few years back. Ben brings them back to his house, where he looks at the message and reveals he is Obi-Wan, and has been in hiding for years. He tells Luke that his father, Anakin, was actually a Jedi Knight killed by a Jedi turned Sith called Darth Vader. He shows and gives Luke Anakin's old lightsaber, and offers to train him in the ways of the Force, but Luke refuses.
They then find the same Jawas, who sold the droids to Luke, had been killed by the Empire, and Luke realizes their search would lead them to his house. Back home, he finds his home destroyed and his family dead. Seeing as he has nothing left on Tatooine, he decides to go with Obi-Wan and become a Jedi. They go to Mos Eisley Spaceport to find a pilot to bring them to Alderaan, and while at the bar, two men named Cornelius Evazan and Ponda Baba pick a fight with Luke, but Obi-Wan cuts off Ponda's arm and wounds Evazan in the stomach, and the two flee. They meet a pilot named Han Solo and his Wookie friend Chewbacca, and they agree to take them to Alderaan in their ship, the Millennium Falcon. On the way to the ship, they are attacked by Stormtroopers, but make it out unharmed. On the way to Alderaan, Luke begins to train, and Han reveals he does not believe in the Force.
They reach where Alderaan is supposed to be, only to find it is gone. Luke sees what he thinks is a small moon, but Obi-Wan says that it is actually a space station called the Death Star. A tractor beam pulls them on board, but Luke and Han disguise as Stormtroopers, and they go to a security room where they find the cell Leia is in. Obi-Wan goes to disable the tractor beam, C-3PO and R2-D2 stay in the security room, and Luke is able to convince a doubtful Han to help rescue Leia, and they pretend Chewbacca is their prisoner. They eventually find Leia in the Detention Block, but Stormtroopers begin to shoot at them, and they escape through the garbage chute. While down there, a Dianga grabs Luke, but the others are able to rescue him as the walls start closing in. However, C-3PO, who is worrying, accidentally left the comlink off but turn it back on and shuts down the walls and saves the group. When the group reach the hangar, they see Obi-Wan dueling Darth Vader, and Obi-Wan allows Vader to hit him, killing him. The group escape on the Falcon, and Luke grieves for Obi-Wan.
Luke manning one of the Millennium Falcon's turrets.
On the way back to Yavin 4, home of the Rebellion's current headquarters, the Falcon is attacked by a squad of TIE fighters. Luke and Han shoot them all down, and they successfully make it to Yavin. They give the Rebel Alliance the plans to the Death Star, and Luke is one of the pilots sent to destroy it. Before he leaves on the mission, he meets his old friend, Biggs Darklighter, who is also a part of the mission and vouches for Luke when asked by their commanding officer, Red Leader Garven Dreis, if Luke can handle flying one of the Rebellion's X-Wing fighters. He then finds that Han is leaving because he has got his reward money for saving Leia, and he has to pay Jabba the Hutt back.
As the Battle of Yavin begins, many of the Rebel pilots are killed, including Biggs. Eventually, it is only Luke and Wedge Antilles left along with a lone Y-Wing pilot. Wedge's ship is damaged, and Luke tells him to go back before he is killed. As Luke makes his way to the exhaust port in the Death Star that he has to shoot in, Darth Vader is flying his personal TIE fighter behind him, and fires at him. Before he can kill Luke, Han and Chewbacca come and shoot one of Darth Vader's wingmen, causing the other to panic and clip Vader's fighter, causing it to spin into space, and Luke is guided by the spirit of Obi-Wan. With his guidance, he is able to destroy the Death Star. Back on Yavin, Luke and Han are awarded for their courage and congratulated by their fellow Rebels.
The Empire Strikes Back
Three years after the destruction of the Death Star, the Galactic Empire have been chasing the Rebel Alliance from planet to planet in hopes of victory. Since the Battle of Yavin, Darth Vader has been trying to find Luke, believing the Force is strong in him after sensing it back during the battle. The Rebels are using the icy planet Hoth as a base. While Luke is out securing the perimeter on his tauntaun, he is attacked by a wampa and brought back to its cave. He wakes up to find he is hanging upside down, and his lightsaber is stuck in the snow. He tries to use the Force to grab his lightsaber, and when he has it, he cuts himself down. The wampa comes in, but Luke slices off its arm, and runs out into the snow trying to return to Echo Base, but due to his injuries from the wampa and the frigid cold as night falls on Hoth with subzero temperatures, he collapses. While lying in the snow, he sees a vision of Obi-Wan telling him to go to the Dagobah system to find Jedi Master Yoda, just before he passes out. Luckily, Han comes to rescue him and cuts open his tauntaun and puts him inside it to keep him warm until Han can set up a shelter and wait out the night until morning, when they can be found by the Rebel snowspeeders. Luke wakes up in the medical center back at Echo Base while Leia and Han are arguing, and Leia kisses Luke. Luke gets ready for the Battle of Hoth as the Empire, who had located the base thanks to a Viper probe droid, prepare for a ground battle as the Rebellion attempts to evacuate with as much men and materials as they can before Echo Base is overrun by Imperial forces. Quickly into the battle, Luke's co-pilot, Dak, is killed, and Luke tries to survive on his own. He has Wedge, flying as his wingman, wrap a tow cable around the legs of one AT-AT and bring it down before a well-aimed strike to its lightly-armored neck destroys it, but then crashes himself after his snowspeeder is hit by flak from the AT-AT blasters, barely escaping with a handheld tow cable before his snowspeeder is crushed underfoot by one of the Imperial walkers. He grapples up to another AT-AT and cuts a hole in it with his lightsaber, and throws a grenade in, and then drops back into the snow before it explodes, blowing the head of the AT-AT to pieces. After the battle, he and R2 leave Hoth in his X-Wing after Wedge calls after Luke and wishes him good luck before meeting him at the Rebel rendezvous point, but instead of going to the rendezvous point, they go to Dagobah to find Yoda.
Luke crash lands on Dagobah, and finds that it is a swamp. After he settles in, he begins to eat when a small green creature startles him, causing him to pull out his blaster. After the creature assures he means no harm, Luke tells him he is looking for a Jedi master named Yoda. The creature says he knows who Yoda is, and he would take him to him. While eating in the creature's hut, Luke snaps saying that they are wasting time. The creature begins to say that Luke is impatient, and Luke wonders who he is talking to. He then hears Obi-Wan's voice, and deduces that the creature is Jedi Master Yoda, and asks him to train him. After some persuasion, Yoda agrees, and they begin to train. Luke gets frustrated when Yoda asks him to move his sunken ship with the Force, and asks him to try, but to his amazement, Yoda does it and tells him that there is no try, he does or does not, and if he does not believe he can do it, that is why he fails where Yoda succeeds. Later, Luke goes into a part of the swamp where he brings only his lightsaber. While there, he sees a shadow approaching, and realizes it is Darth Vader. The two begins to duel, with Luke cutting of Vader's head, only to see it explode and reveal his own face. He realizes this is a vision, and goes back to Yoda. While he is training, Luke sees a vision of his friends suffering in a city of clouds. He decides to go and help them, much to Yoda's disapproval. The spirit of Obi-Wan appears and tells him to not fall to the Dark Side like Vader did.
Luke about to fight Vader.
Luke and R2 arrive in Bespin, but they are quickly split up when Luke tries to pursue Leia, Chewbacca, and 3PO, despite Leia yelling to him that he is walking into a trap. Luke finds his friends, who had been betrayed by Han's friend Lando Calrissian, being held prisoner by the bounty hunter Boba Fett and some Stormtroopers. They begin to shoot at him, but he makes it out safely. He goes into a chamber, but is locked in by Darth Vader, and the two begin to duel. Vader herds Luke into the carbon-freezing pit per his plan to have Luke frozen in carbonite to take to the Emperor, but Luke swings out. Luke does not have enough experience to fight Vader, but he still fights nobly. During the duel, a glass window breaks, releasing a vacuum that begins to suck them both out. Vader knocks Luke in, but he is able to hold onto a balcony for survival. Eventually, Vader has Luke cornered on a very high balcony, and cuts his right hand off, and it goes plummeting down along with his lightsaber. Vader asks Luke if Obi-Wan told him what happened to his father, and Luke replies that he told him he killed him. However, Vader denies it, saying he is his father. Luke is horrified when he hears this, and yells in disbelief and horror. Vader then gives him the option to join the dark side or die. Luke knows he can never betray his friends, and jumps down, goes through a tunnel, and hangs on to a weather vane for survival. He calls out for Leia, and she, who is on the Falcon with Chewbacca, Lando, C-3PO, and R2-D2, hears him, and they go back and rescue him, escaping Bespin, but find the Imperial Navy flagship Executor waiting for them in space, preparing to capture them with their tractor beam. During this time, Vader makes contact with Luke through the Force, asking to come with him, but Luke can only wonder why Obi-Wan hid this vital information from him. R2 manages to reactivate the hyperdrive, and the Falcon escapes capture as it takes off into hyperspace.
Back on a Rebel medical ship, Luke gets a prosthetic hand and learns that Vader froze Han in carbonite and gave him to Boba Fett, who is taking him to Jabba's Palace back on Tatooine. Lando and Chewie call saying they will find Han and Boba Fett, and Luke wishes that the Force be with them. He, Leia, C-3PO, and R2-D2 all look out into space as the Falcon departs while the Rebel fleet continues onward.
Return of the Jedi
Luke sends R2-D2 and C-3PO with a hologram of him making a deal to sell the droids in exchange for a frozen Han Solo. Jabba refuses upon being told by his majordomo Bib Fortuna not to bargain as Luke was no Jedi, and takes the droids anyway. He later comes to rescue his friends, who had been captured in Jabba's Palace due to a rescue plan gone wrong. He tries to negotiate with Jabba, but Jabba tricks him and opens the trapdoor he is standing on, thus leading him to the rancor pit. Although he does not have his lightsaber, he is able to activate a door that comes down and kills the rancor. Jabba then sentences him, Han, and Chewie to be fed to the sarlacc at the Great Pit of Carkoon. C-3PO, who is forced to work for Jabba, asks if Luke has any last words, and he replies that Jabba can let them go now or die, but his threats result in laughter from Jabba and everyone on board his sail barge. R2-D2, who is on Jabba's sail barge, shoots Luke's lightsaber to him, and he begins to massacre Jabba's men on the small carriers he, Han, Chewie, and a disguised Lando are on. Although Han is temporarily blind, a side effect of the carbon-freezing, he is able to hit Boba Fett with one of Jabba's guards' polearms, thus sending him into the pit. Luke goes onto the sail barge and rescues Leia, who had just killed Jabba, and they swing onto the carrier the group are on, and fly away as the barge explodes after Luke and Leia turned the deck gun on it.
While the others go to the Rebel rendezvous, Luke and R2-D2 return to Dagobah to complete Luke's training. While there, he finds Yoda dying, and asks if he can complete his training, but Yoda tells him he has no more training. He has to face Darth Vader to become a Jedi to complete his training. Luke asks if Vader is his father, and Yoda confirms it, but before he dies, he tells Luke there is another Skywalker. He then vanishes, becoming one with the Force, and Luke leaves. While outside, he sees the spirit of Obi-Wan, and he asks why he told him Vader killed his father. Obi-Wan says that from a certain point of view, he was right meaning the evil Anakin Skywalker killed the good one and became Darth Vader. Luke refuses to kill his father, and asks what Yoda meant by another Skywalker. Obi-Wan tells him that he has a twin sister who he was separated from as a baby to be safe from the Empire. Luke deduces that it is Leia, and leaves. Obi-Wan tells him if he does not kill Vader, then all is lost, and the Emperor has already won the Galactic Civil War.
Luke on Endor.
Luke goes back to the rendezvous and agrees to be part of Han's strike team for the Forest Moon of Endor. They find out that the Empire is building the second Death Star, and they would have to take out the shield generator so Lando's team can get to it. On the way to Endor, Luke sees the Imperial Navy flagship, the Super Star Destroyer Executor, and he senses Darth Vader is on-board. Han is able to pass by easily, and they land on Endor. While exploring the forest, they encounter a squad of scout troopers, and Han's attempt to take them out quietly fails, so Luke and Leia chase three on speeders. Luke rides with Leia, but he is able to take the speeder of another one, and he and Leia split up. Luke then crashes his and jumps off, and reflects the trooper's blasts with his lightsaber, before slicing the front end of the speeder bike off, leaving the scout trooper to spin out of control before crashing into a tree trunk. When Luke meets with the group, he finds that Leia is missing, and they begin to search for her. While searching, they find a dead animal hung up, and Chewie runs to it, thus setting off a trap, and they are all hung in a net up high. Then little furry creatures called Ewoks come out and bring them to their village as prisoners, with C-3PO as an exception, as they treat him like a god. The Ewoks plan on cooking and eating them, but C-3PO tries to stop it, but to no avail. Luke tell him to say that if they do not let them go, then he will be very angry and use his powers on them. Luke makes it believable by using the Force to lift C-3PO up, and the Ewoks are convinced enough to set them free. They find out that is where Leia was staying, and they all have a party as C-3PO tells the Ewoks the story of what had happened since Luke joined the Rebellion. A saddened Luke, however, leaves in the middle, and Leia goes outside to see if he is okay. Here, Luke reveals to her that Vader is his father and she is his sister. Leia says that somehow she always knows that. Luke says that the longer he is with the group, he would be putting them in danger, and leaves to face Vader.
Luke is brought before the Emperor.
Luke allows himself to be captured by the Empire, and is brought to Darth Vader at a landing pad. Luke tries to convince him to join the light side, but Vader says that Anakin Skywalker is dead and he will always be Darth Vader.
Vader then takes Luke to see The Emperor in his throne room on the second Death Star. When they arrive, The Emperor orders his guards to leave, and he and Luke begin to talk. Eventually, the Emperor shows Luke that he has set up the Rebels, and they are prepared for the attack. He makes Luke watch his friends be killed trying to destroy the second Death Star. He gives Luke the opportunity to take his lightsaber and kill him, but Luke refuses. With the Emperor continuously taunting him, Luke gives in and uses the Force to take his lightsaber; but as he is about to strike, Vader blocks the blow with his own lightsaber, and they duel once again.
At one point, Luke jumps onto a high balcony, and when he refuses to give in to the dark side, Vader throws his lightsaber at the balcony, causing Luke to lose his balance and fall off. Still refusing to fight Vader, Luke hides in the darkness, and Vader tries to anger him into coming out. It is when Vader says that if Luke does not turn he would try to turn Leia instead, that Luke comes out and begins to attack Vader in a fury at the threat of his twin sister joining the Sith. Luke has Vader cornered at a balcony, where he cuts off his dueling hand. The Emperor wants Luke to kill Vader, but after coming to his senses and realizing he is about to follow his father down the path of the dark side, Luke refuses, saying he is a Jedi like his father. The Emperor, who is outraged, shoots lightning out of his hands, trying to kill Luke, but when Vader sees Luke in pain, he grabs the Emperor and tosses him down a vast pit, thus killing him and fulfilling the Chosen One prophecy as he destroys the Sith and becomes Anakin Skywalker again, avenging his wife and his past sins. Luke brings the mortally wounded Vader back to a ship, and wants to bring him to Endor, but Vader asks Luke to take off his mask so he can look at his son with his own two eyes. Luke does so and sees a scarred, pale white face that has not seen daylight for years since his duel on Mustafar with Obi-Wan. Luke silently cries as Anakin passes away, and he gets on a shuttle and leaves with his father's body just as Lando destroys the second Death Star.
Back on Endor, there is a celebration in honor of the defeat of the Empire, which Luke joins after lighting a funeral pyre for his father. While at the party, Luke sees the spirits of Obi-Wan, Yoda, and Anakin. They all smile as they look at Luke, and he smiles back.
The Force Awakens
The elderly Luke Skywalker in The Force Awakens.
Initially, Luke does not make a physical appearance for almost the entire film. However, he is mentioned by his old friend and brother-in-law Han Solo and several others, sometime after the Battle of Endor and the Battle of Jakku respectively, Luke became a Jedi Master and tried to establish a New Jedi Order by training a new generation of Jedi Knights, the first of Luke's students was his nephew Ben Solo and several other Force-users. His nephew, unfortunately, fall to the dark side, as Snoke preyed on Ben's internal conflict, Ben then became known as as Kylo Ren, and aided by the Knights of Ren, killed most, if not, all of Luke's students.
Luke was one of the few, quite possibly the last, who managed to survive and escape the Jedi massacre and this devastating tragedy greatly delayed his plan to restore the Jedi Order to its former glory. In the aftermath of the Jedi massacre, Luke was deeply grieved and wracked with guilt, blaming himself for his students' deaths and Ben's turn to the dark side. Luke then mysteriously disappeared, vanishing into self-imposed exile as he chose to seek out the First Jedi Temple.
The First Order, under the orders of Snoke, are to find and kill Luke, as Snoke knows that as long as Luke is alive, a new generation of Jedi Knights can rise again. Luke finally makes a physical appearance at the end of the film, but does not speak; Luke is found on the planet Ahch-To, which is dotted with islands, by the Force-sensitive scavenger Rey, and his friends R2-D2 and Chewbacca. Rey presents Luke with his father's lightsaber, showing the elderly Jedi Master that he is needed once more and that he stands as the last hope in the galaxy.
The Last Jedi
Luke, after a brief look at his father's second lightsaber, tossed it away and left the Plateu, but was followed by Rey, who wanted him to train her and aid in defeating the First Order. Luke blatantly refused to train Rey in the ways of the Jedi or help the Resistance, declaring that the Jedi Order needed to end with him. A persistent Rey held hope that the legendary Jedi Master would teach her and refused to leave Ahch-To, even after learning from Chewbacca that Han was dead (which he did not know before, due to cutting himself from the Force). It was only through encouragement from R2-D2 that Luke began to train Rey. But in her first lessons, Rey allowed the dark side in and Luke refused to teach her further. Rey also learned from her Force-bond to Kylo Ren that Luke had been tempted to kill Ben after discovering he had been seduced by the dark side, leading him to destroy Luke's new Jedi Order and take several apprentices with him; those who would become the Knights of Ren. Believing himself responsible for Ben's fall, Luke came searching for Ahch-To so that he could die and end the Jedi Order with him. Rey confronted and dueled Luke, before telling him that she would try to bring Ben back to the light, though Luke disagreed and told her that this would not end as she thought, causing her to leave.
After the spirit of Yoda visited Luke to inspire him that Rey was the future of the Jedi, Luke Force Projected himself to the planet Crait to distract Ben and the First Order long enough for what remained of the Resistance to escape on the Millennium Falcon. Luke toyed with Ben before revealing himself to be a Projection and proclaimed that he would haunt Ben and that he would not be the last Jedi, before disappearing. Exhausted, Luke climbed back atop the meditation rock, gazed at the binary sunset, and finally at peace, passed away and became one with the Force.
The Rise of Skywalker
As the title indicates, Luke will have a major role in this installment, as he comes back as a Force Spirit to continue mentoring Rey in her battle against Kylo Ren and the First Order.
Video games
Disney INFINITY
Luke Skywalker appeared in Disney INFINITY's third installment as a playable character. He is playable in the Rise Against the Empire Play Set, and can also be used in the Twilight of the Republic and The Force Awakens play sets if the player collects his champion coin in each play set. Like all the other characters, he is playable in the Toy Box 3.0. In his skill tree, his special move is his Force Dash.
In the Rise Against the Empire Play Set, which is an alternate storyline of the Original Trilogy, he escapes the Death Star with Leia, Han, and Chewie, following C-3PO and R2-D2 in an escape pod that heads to Tatooine. As soon as they land, they travel to Ben's house, where they tell Ben that R2-D2 has the plans to defeat the Empire, and that they must send R2-D2 to Alderaan. Before they leave, Ben shows Luke the lightsaber that Anakin used, telling him that Vader killed his father. Eventually, the group get enough credit to buy the Millennium Falcon from Jabba the Hutt, and begin to search for Alderaan. However, when they get to its spot, they find that it had already been destroyed by the Death Star, and then the Millennium Falcon gets sucked in by the Death Star's tractor beam. While Ben goes to find Vader, Luke travels around the Death Star with Han, Leia, and Chewie to deactivate the tractor beam's power supplies. When they get back to the Millennium Falcon, an army of stormtroopers is waiting. After the stormtroopers are defeated, they notice Ben in a lightsaber duel with Vader. Ben is killed by Vader, just before Luke leaves with the others, feeling deeply saddened by Ben's death. With the plans, Luke and the others manage to destroy the Death Star.
Afterwards, they head to Hoth to settle in the base. Soon, the Empire finds them, using AT-AT Walkers to attack them. Successfully, Luke and the others take the AT-ATs down before they can destroy the base. After taking the soldiers to the evacuation point, Vader arrives along with an army of stormtroopers, revealing to Luke that he is his father. Shocked by this, Luke announces that he will never join the Dark Side, just before he leaves with Han, Leia, C-3PO, and R2-D2 on the Millennium Falcon to go to Endor to destroy a shield generator that is shielding a second Death Star. After the shield is down, Luke travels to the second Death Star to face Vader, while Leia, Han, and Chewie join him. The moment they meet Vader, they get into a battle with him. Palpatine soon attempts to kill Luke with his powers, while holding his friends back, but Vader reforms and throws Palpatine into the pit. Before Vader dies, he admits to Luke that he was right about that there was some good in him. The group then get into the Millennium Falcon and work together to destroy the second Death Star, with their celebration taking place on Endor.
Star Wars: Force Arena
Luke Skywalker is a playable character in Star Wars: Force Arena as a Legendary squad leader card. There are three variants of Luke Skywalker in the game. The first normal variant is based on his appearance in Star Wars: A New Hope. The second variant is a limited-time variant based on concept art of Luke in A New Hope released to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Star Wars. The third variant is based on his appearance in the Star Wars sequel trilogy.
Relationships
Gallery
Trivia
- Robby Benson auditioned to play Luke, but lost this role to Mark Hamill.
- In 2008, the character was selected by Empire magazine as the 54th greatest movie character of all time.
- Luke is listed at number 14, of the Fandomania.com 100 Greatest Fictional Characters.
- In A New Hope, Luke's line "I can't see a thing in this helmet" was not scripted. Mark Hamill said this to Harrison Ford when he thought the cameras had stopped rolling, but the filmmakers decided to leave the line in.
- In the (now non-canon) Star Wars Expanded Universe/Legends, Luke had a wife named Mara Jade and a son named Ben Skywalker.
External links
Luke Skywalker on Wookieepedia
Luke Skywalker on StarWars.com (backup link on Archive.org)
References
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