Skip to main content

Mark Hamill Brought Reddit an AMA From a Galaxy Far, Far Away

Did everyone remember to ask him if he ever picked up those power converters?

2405255030_23f799f542_b

The Joker and Luke Skywalker—er, Mark Hamill—did an AMA on Reddit last night, and it was pretty much as great as you would expect. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any Episode VII news outside of a brief discussion on whether or not Luke would sport any facial hair, but here are some of our favorite questions and answers.

Recommended Videos

Not only was Hamill great as always, but a few Redditors dropped some great links to stuff you might not have seen before, like this panel where Hamill praises Heath Ledger’s Joker and then does some of his lines in the animated Joker voice. So, read a few of our favorite exchanges, and then head over to the full AMA when you have time. You won’t regret it.

Did Luke Skywalker get swanky purple lightsaber envy?

seamslegit
What is your favorite Lightsaber Color?

RealMarkHamill
I just worked with Samuel L Jackson and he reminded me he had a purple lightsaber, which nobody had, I thought that was cool that he got his own color.
My favorite is green, I’m happy with what I had. You don’t need to give me lavender or raw umber or whatever.

The burning questions of Episode VII: Will Luke have a beard?

Someone linked some great art of an older Luke with a beard for us in this one.

darthrevan
Older Luke Skywalker: beard or no beard?

RealMarkHamill
Well based on what has gone before, I have a feeling it’s beard, but I have no confirmation of that. My wife said if you grow a beard, you’ll cover up your cleft chin. That’s not something that occurred to me. But I can only guess. I’ve never read any of the novelizations or anything but someone said to me, ‘you’re married, you have children.’ Based on Obi-Wan I would have guessed I’d be living in an igloo or something. He was more spiritual, he didn’t have a wife or children. And when you find out one of the only eligible women in the galaxy is your sister, it really cuts down on your odds of hooking up with anyone. But that’s not what these movies are about. The charm of the trilogy is it appeals to the child in all of us. It goes back to playing in your backyard. It’s very primal, it’s good versus evil, a high sense of adventure.

AlderaanRefugee
Artwork with beard.

Bantha milk tastes pretty bad, but at least it wasn’t bantha poodoo. (Sorry about the Episode I joke, everyone.)

funkseoulbrotha
Mark,
What did (Bantha) blue milk taste like?

RealMarkHamill
It was ghastly! Since it was a prop, I wanted to matter of factly have a sip, but they used this milk that doesn’t need to be refrigerated. It was sweet. It’s moments like that when I think, boy, I really am a good actor since I didn’t gag. I can’t remember the name, it comes in these triangular cartons, it’s everlasting milk or something like that. I don’t know if they still make it. It’s sweet and syrupy and yucky. If you want to try it go to a camping store and drop some blue food coloring in it and there you go.

Marital advice for Jedi masters.

I just really like in these AMAs when people ask their heroes for regular life advice. It’s always interesting to see what they say.

the_slunk
You’ve been married since 1978 — and to the same person!
What’s the secret to having such a successful marriage?

RealMarkHamill
Well i just was lucky i found the right person. if you’re lucky enough to find your soulmate, you have to keep your fingers crossed. A really short manual would read “Don’t cheat”, because that seems to be where people break up. When you go through tricky periods you have to work on it and having children helps because you know you’re trying to find a way to make everyone happy. You know, she was my dental hygienist. I went in to get my teeth cleaned and that’s where we met. Good luck, by the way, Slunk!

Mark Hamill thought the Star Wars Christmas Special was a bad idea.

Good thing he wasn’t in charge. Where would we all be if we had no Star Wars Christmas Special to mock?

TheLieLlama
How proud are you of the Star Wars Holiday Special? Did you know at the time of shooting it that it would turn out the way it did?

RealMarkHamill
Oh yeah. I thought it was a mistake from the beginning. It was just unlike anything else in the Star Wars universe. And I initially said that I didn’t want to do it, but George said it would help keep Star Wars in the consciousness and I wanted to be a team player so I did it. And I also said that I didn’t think Luke should sing, so they cut that number. And now, I think we shouldn’t be ashamed of it. They should put on the extra of the DVD’s – it shows how incredibly fallible we are! At that same time, it did introduce Boba Fett in an animated sequence, so it’s significant in that respect. Plus Art Carney was in it, who is one of my favorite comedic actors of all time.

We’ll conclude with a song from Mark Hamill’s Joker.

MajeekRorschach
Thanks for doing this AMA, what is your best memory voicing the Joker?

RealMarkHamill
Oh gosh it’s really hard to single out one moment. I love working when the whole cast is there because you get to do it real time start to finish. A lot of times with animation you do it one actor at a time, but doing the original series was like doing a radio play. And I love Kevin, he’s a wonderful Batman and a wonderful friend.

RealMarkHamill
Oh I just remembered another thing where I got to sing a really creepy version of “Only You”, a capella. That wasn’t something I expected to do as Joker – sing a song. But the Joker is never boring to me because he’s crazy. And if you’re crazy, you are unpredictable and you never do anything the same way. I was surprised how much I loved playing that role.

AlderaanRefugee
Link for the lazy.

(via Reddit, image via Bryan)

Meanwhile in related links

Have a tip we should know? [email protected]

Author
Dan Van Winkle
Dan Van Winkle (he) is an editor and manager who has been working in digital media since 2013, first at now-defunct <em>Geekosystem</em> (RIP), and then at <em>The Mary Sue</em> starting in 2014, specializing in gaming, science, and technology. Outside of his professional experience, he has been active in video game modding and development as a hobby for many years. He lives in North Carolina with Lisa Brown (his wife) and Liz Lemon (their dog), both of whom are the best, and you will regret challenging him at <em>Smash Bros.</em>

Filed Under:

Follow The Mary Sue: