Inquiring fans want to know if a lightsaber could destroy Captain America’s shield, and Mark Hamill is reminding us where he stands.
When you mix fandoms with Star Wars, many interesting questions begin to come up — such as, what would happen if Jean-Luc Picard met Luke Skywalker? Or what would happen if you used a lightsaber on Captain America’s shield? That latter question was recently addressed by Star Wars’ very own Luke Skywalker, Mark Hamill, who reminded fans about his stance on the subject.
The question was asked to him by a fan on Twitter. And within a matter of hours, Hamill responded back to the fan with his thoughts.
On Twitter, the fan wrote: “OH at my house: Would a lightsaber be able to destroy Captain America’s Vibranium shield? Because when you live with an 11YO boy, these are the questions.”
Hamill responded by saying that the question had been asked (and answered) two years ago. Back in 2018, Hamill responded to the question given two scenarios. One, in the Marvel universe, the other in the Star Wars universe.
https://twitter.com/HamillHimself/status/1318224563419762689?s=20
Per Hamill’s explanation, the lightsaber would be able to cut through Captain America’s vibranium shield, and probably with ease. Chris Evans, who responded to the original tweet in 2018, didn’t seem to have a good defense in response to the issue — but he was probably averting answering the questions because at the time, following Avengers: Infinity War — Captain America didn’t have his original shield for Luke Skywalker to destroy in the first place. (Tony Stark ended up giving him his shield back in Avengers: Endgame… just for Thanos to break it moments later in the final battle. So it isn’t 100 percent invincible.)
Down below in the Twitter comments, fans began to sound off with their thoughts as well. That includes an actual scientist who sided with Hamill, confirming a lightsaber should be able to cut through it.
I know it's way more complicated than this given the in-universe physics. But it does make me wonder if vibranium would be incredibly cold to the touch, absorbing heat from your hand. Obviously, we need to experiment. Are you two busy right now?
— Phil (SubStack link in bio) Plait (@BadAstronomer) October 19, 2020
In another tweet, Kyle Hill shared a video that he created for the Nerdist in 2016 explaining the same phenomenon in-depth. From his research, Captain America’s shield would be able to block the lightsaber, but with enough time, the lightsaber could eventually cut through it.
I believe I can help https://t.co/Xyzf1hQjkU pic.twitter.com/koZqkvksSq
— Kyle Hill (@Sci_Phile) October 19, 2020
And as a final person to have chimed in on the matter, who better to ask than MCU and Star Wars universe actor Samuel L. Jackson, who plays Nick Fury and Mace Windu respectively. Writer Jerry L. Barrow shared a 2019 interview of his with Jackson for BET in the comments, and here’s what was shared in the story:
"“A lightsaber will cut through anything,” Jackson says without hesitation. “Vibranium also.”"
So there you have it. It looks like, from this small sample, most people are in agreement that Captain America’s shield can’t hold up forever. It is strong and powerful, but that can’t beat the power created by Kyber crystals in lightsabers.
What do you think about the debate? Can a lightsaber truly defeat Captain America’s shield? Let us know in the comments.