New Mandalorian Disney Gallery Episode Will Explore Luke Skywalker’s Cameo
Lucasfilm has announced a special episode of the behind-the-scenes Disney Gallery series that will explore the making of The Mandalorian's season 2 finale. Since the tepid reactions to the conclusion of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, some fans have seen The Mandalorian as the franchise's last remaining lifeline. Luckily, the show has been met with near-universal praise from fans and critics alike, most recently scoring several heavy-hitting Emmy nominations for the 2021 Primetime Emmy Awards.
The Mandalorian season 2 ended with an action-packed finale that saw the return of a young Luke Skywalker several years after the events of Return of the Jedi. This depiction of the character was one that some sorely missed, especially following the sequel trilogy's controversial interpretation of Luke Skywalker. His cameo in the show was kept a closely guarded secret, so much so that the original Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian episode for the making of season 2 that aired last year did not so much as mention the character.
StarWars.com recently revealed that they would be exploring the return of Luke Skywalker in their upcoming episode of the behind-the-scenes documentary series, Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian. The episode will shed light on the "technology used for recreating Luke Skywalker," as well as "the collaborative process, including working with Mark Hamill" to bring the character to life. The full announcement can be read below:
“Making of the Season 2 Finale” is a behind-the-scenes look at the making of this celebrated “chapter” of The Mandalorian, with a focus on the technology used for recreating Luke Skywalker. It delves into the collaborative process, including working with Mark Hamill, to create an authentic and fitting recreation, and explores the immense pressure and responsibility the filmmakers had in bringing back one of the most important characters in film history.
Disney has been dabbling with de-aging technology over the course of the past decade, with digitally de-aged actors appearing in various franchises from Tron to the MCU. The recent Star Wars films have taken this technology a step further, paving the way for discussions regarding the ethics of bringing deceased actors "back to life," such as in the case of Peter Cushing's Grand Moff Tarkin in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Carrie Fisher's General Leia in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Mark Hamill is still healthy and well, but his likeness appearing in The Mandalorian remains part of this tradition.
Fans have been clamoring to know more about the process that brought the de-aged Luke to life ever since the first Disney Gallery episode left out any mention of the character. Although British actor Max Lloyd-Jones was revealed to be the stand-in for Luke's body, it was still unclear how much involvement Mark Hamill himself had with the character's return in The Mandalorian. It seems that these questions and more will soon be answered in the upcoming Disney Gallery special.
Source: StarWars.com