The premise of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is still a huge mystery, but fans are just happy to know that Luke Skywalker will return in the highly anticipated film. It has already been confirmed that Mark Hamill will reprise his role as the Jedi Master one more time in the last movie in the Skywalker Saga. But will Star Wars Episode 9 reveal that Luke is still alive and well? The first photo of Hamill in The Rise of Skywalker somehow hints at Luke surviving despite his supposed death in Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
Fans were understandably disappointed with what happened to Luke Skywalker in The Last Jedi. After Force projecting himself unto the salt planet of Crait to take on Kylo Ren, Luke was shown slowly fading away on Ahch-To. It was a dramatic ending for the Jedi Master, yet people are now convinced that Star Wars Episode 9 will retcon Luke's death.
New images from The Rise of Skywalker were recently unveiled by Vanity Fair. The pictures included the first looks at new characters Zorri Bliss (Keri Russell) and General Pryde (Richard E. Grant) as well as awesome shots of the Knights of Ren and Rey and Kylo Ren fighting in the rain. However, the photo that people took notice of was the one showing Luke Skywalker standing alongside R2-D2 as the ground behind them blazes with dark fire.
It's an unusual image since it depicts Luke as being alive and not a mere Force ghost. In addition to that, fans noticed that Luke's gloved hand looks a lot like the hand shown in a 2017 Vanity Fair cover picture showing the Jedi Master with Rey.
So what could this possibly mean for Luke in Star Wars Episode 9? Some believe the hand in the newer image was covered up because he might still have his robot hand. If this is the case, it could confirm that Luke is alive and well in The Rise of Skywalker.
This isn't the only possibility of why the hand was altered. There are speculations that Luke's hand may have been restored in the photo, which could reveal that he is a Force ghost.
There are so many possibilities about what will happen in The Rise of Skywalker. For now, fans can rest assured that they haven't seen the last of Luke Skywalker and he is set to get a truly fitting end this December.
Find out how Luke Skywalker will be brought back when Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits theaters on December 20.
