Star Wars didn’t originally begin as a nine-episode plan.  In the very beginning, George Lucas envisioned only one movie.  When Empire Strikes Back was released with “Episode V” in the opening crawl, “A New Hope” and “Episode IV” were added when the film was re-released in 1981.  This set-up of three trilogies—prequel trilogy, original trilogy, and sequel trilogy—has led to decades of fan speculation, and when the prequels came along, it led to loads of disappointment and loathing to where people now happily mock the series’ creator even though he’s not really involved with Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

But he did have an idea for Episode VII back in the 80s, and a 1983 interview with Mark Hamill reveals that Lucas was only off on the release year by a bit, and that his idea for Luke may be very much alive in J.J. Abrams’ new film.  Hit the jump for more. [Possible spoilers ahead]

In this clip, Hamill tells the interviewer:

“He at one time said, ‘Would you consider playing an Obi-wan type character handing Excalibur down to the next generation?’ and I said, ‘When would that be?’, and at the time he said, ‘Oh, around 2011.’”

 

In the scheme of things, only being four years off isn’t that bad.

As to Luke’s status in Episode VII, a rumored plot description says that John Boyega and Daisy Ridley’s characters discover Luke’s old lightsaber, and then go on a journey with Han and Chewie to find the Jedi Master, who has been missing for thirty years.

Looking at this photo of Hamill rocking a beard, you can definitely see that he’s meant to echo Obi-wan’s look.  Will Luke’s lightsaber—his “Excalibur”—ultimately be given to Boyega or Ridley’s character?  Or perhaps to someone else?

We’re still in the grand world of speculation (I’m still waiting for a 15-page dissertation on the Force Awakens teaser trailer), but it would be kind of incredible if this comment from Hamill echoed what ultimately ends up in the movie.  Naturally, if Luke or the plot resembles this description, we’ll be wondering how much involvement Lucas had with the new movie.

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Image via Mark Hamill