Mark Hamill couldn’t attend the recent Star Wars Celebration in Chicago, so he sent ahead some signed photos that were randomly given to fans at the event. Star Wars Celebration is one of the largest gatherings for Star Wars fans in the world, with this year’s event taking place at McCormick Place in Chicago. Thousands of fans attended the event to get exclusive looks at upcoming Star Wars movies and TV shows, as well as have access to exclusive merchandise not available anywhere else.
This year’s event saw some significant reveals, including the first trailer for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Fans reacted to the trailer with loud applause, hugs and even crying, but that was only the first of many surprises in store for them throughout the long weekend. They also got to see the first footage from Jon Favreau’s The Mandalorian television series, which will premiere on Disney+. Many Star Wars celebrities were in attendance signing autographs and taking photos with fans, including the prequel movies’ Hayden Christensen, everyone’s favorite Wookie Peter Mayhew, Warwick Davis (who portrayed Wicket the Ewok in the original trilogy, among other characters throughout the franchise) and voice actors from the Star Wars animated series.
Hamill is often a staple at these events, but the stars didn’t align that would allow him to attend this year. Instead, he was there in spirit through a Lucasfilm publicist on the ground in Chicago who was handing out autographed photos to fans. Hamill tweeted some of those fans’ reactions.
Hamill has always maintained a good relationship with Star Wars fans, especially on social media. He also occasionally trolls them, by hinting at plot points that may or may not be true. Hamill appeared most recently in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, with his character fighting off Kylo Ren and the First Order in a projected form before disappearing to, presumably, become one with the Force. However, his character, Luke Skywalker might not be gone for good, with the actor hinting that he might have a cameo in the upcoming movie, although it’s unclear if he will appear as Force ghost, if the scene is a flashback or if he’s joking again.
The next Star Wars Celebration will be in Anaheim in 2020, but the focus of that event will change from this year’s Celebration. The Rise of Skywalker wraps up the Skywalker saga, which includes nine movies, so 2020 attendees should expect less emphasis on films and more focus on TV shows and video games.
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Source: Mark Hamill
- Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker Release Date: 2019-12-20
