Mark Hamill can’t keep all his iconic characters’ backstories straight, either
Look, if you've been Luke Skywalker, the Joker, and Skeletor, that's a lot of nerd-knowledge
TV News Mark Hamill
First of all, let’s all just acknowledge that there’s nobody more deserving of a Hollywood second (and third) act than Mark Hamill. After all, the story could have been about the little-known soap opera actor whose big break in a generation-defining sci-fi franchise derailed his career completely. But Hamill’s transition to voice actor saw him, instead, becoming legendary in a whole other arena, and now Hamill fans will have to choose whether to stan Luke Skywalker, the Joker, or He-Man nemesis Skeletor whenever they see (or hear) the ever-affable Hamill on screen.
Appearing remotely on Thursday’s Tonight Show, the actor—who is, indeed, essaying the role of Skeletor in Kevin Smith’s revived Masters Of The Universe: Revelation when the series hits Netflix on July 23—was excited about adding another all-time childhood favorite to his résumé. Calling Smith’s interpretation of the beloved toy-line-turned-cartoon-franchise suitably respectful of the sugary cereal-fueled childhood memories of fans of the series, Hamill explained that Smith’s take involves a serious upgrade on the original’s stilted Saturday morning animation roots. Plus—and no offense intended toward voiceover legend Alan Oppenheimer—it’s got Mark Hamill bringing his late-career gravelly menace to the role of the biggest, baddest, most inexplicably muscular skeleton-man in that particular universe. The stacked voice cast for the sequel series includes the likes of Sarah Michelle Gellar, Lena Headey, Alicia Silverstone, Tony Todd, Stephen Root, Cree Summer, and Hamill’s former animated nemesis, Batman’s Kevin Conroy. (Oh, and Smith’s muse Jason Mewes, playing Stinkor, naturally.)
Still, Hamill’s career’s been a long and storied one, and the guy can perhaps be forgiven for not knowing exactly everything about his three most famous (and voluminously back-storied) characters. Jimmy Fallon, as is his way, busted out a new game for Hamill in which the actor was asked some seriously obscure true-or-false questions about Luke Skywalker, the Joker, and Skeletor. And, if the 69-year-old star missed more than a few, well, blame all the retconning and alternate reality storytelling surrounding the trio. (Fallon did not ask any Slipstream questions, unfortunately. Hamill would have nailed those.)
After all, the guy has a life, so how could Hamill be expected to know whether or not there’s a reality where Bruce Wayne’s mother Martha becomes Joker. (She does.) Or just exactly how Luke wound up meeting the Muppets. (He and a couple of pals crash-landed on Earth, naturally, eventually stumbling backstage at The Muppet Show.) Or what the secret family relationship is between Skeletor and He-Man. (Hamill hasn’t seen a full episode of Masters Of The Universe: Revelation yet, so no word if there’s an awkward uncle-nephew game of catch.) Regardless, Hamill—although sworn to top-secrecy as he is for many of his roles—could tell Fallon that Luke’s surprise reappearance in [redacted spinoff property series] will be unpacked in all its behind-the-scenes glory on Disney+ on August 25. So there’s some more backstory to memorize.
27 Comments
I mean… Luke Skywalker has a pretty simple backstory and the Joker more or less doesn’t have one. I don’t know anything about Skeletor.
Well, there’s The Killing Joke for the Joker. Whether it’s true or not is both beside the point *and* the point.
They gave him some backstory in Mask of the Phantasm.
Fun fact: Skeletor originally attended Julliard on a jazz dance scholarship.
Was he born with a skull for a head? If so his parents weren’t displaying much sensitivity in the name-choosing stakes
His family name was originally Skeletorberg, but his ancestors changed it when they arrived at Ellis Island.
Wait, of the Connecticut Skeletorbergs?
He was originally called Skeleton. Then someone said “c’mon” and someone else said “fine” and wiped part of one line off the whiteboard, and everyone bunked off to lunch.
He was a toy.
Is that canon?
Skeletor used to be St. Bartholomew. He became Skeletor after being flayed alive, which, naturally, turned him evil.
The Joker has like forty. Luke’s was pretty simple in the original trilogy, but if we’re expanding the definition to include meeting the Muppets, there are hundreds to thousands of currently non-or-dubiously-canon additions involved.
Luke Skywalker is great, but he’ll always be Skips to me.
No love for Hamill being the original David Bradford on Eight is Enough?
Willie Aames really made that role his own though. He’s the Sean Connery to Hamill’s Barry Nelson.
Willie Ames played Tommy Bradford, the middle son on Eight is Enough. David Bradford was the oldest son, first played by Hamill in the pilot, then by Grant Goodeve for the run of the series. Goodeve also sang the theme song.
I’m weirdly proud of having gotten that wrong
Talk about Luke Skywalker, or The Joker, or Skeletor, yet no one mentions his most iconic role in The Guyver.
I have but it’s sitting in moderation or been binned completely.Max Reed, CIA.
In hindsight, it’s so weird that Guyver of all things got Western live-action films.
Or even better, Time Runner, that just flat out says in the trailer “Oh yeah, we’re totally ripping off Blade Runner, Terminator, and Aliens.”
Or the Scottish remake.
I see your Slipstream (RIP Bill) and raise you Mutronics / The Guyver.
Technically he’s right that the Joker is not *Batman’s* mother (in Flashpoint, which is clearly being referenced); she’s Bruce Wayne’s mother. In that reality, Bruce is killed in the alley and his father becomes Batman and his mother becomes the Joker.
… and now Hamill fans will have to choose whether to stan Luke Skywalker,
the Joker, or He-Man nemesis Skeletor whenever they see (or hear) the
ever-affable Hamill on screen.
Cocknocker will NOT let this insult slip through his fingers.
Why do they call him Cocknocker?
In that reality, Bruce got killed by the mugger, Thomas became Batman and Martha became the Joker. So the Joker wasn’t Batman’s mother in that story, she was his wife.