Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope is closing in on the 50th anniversary of its release, and the movie continues to captivate audiences. George Lucas's saga of a moisture farmer from Tatooine who saved his father and the galaxy from eternal damnation changed the world of science fiction and filmmaking forever.
Despite its success, work on A New Hope wasn't smooth sailing. There were changes along the way, and among them was a key change to Luke Skywalker that didn't sit right with actor Mark Hamill. Via The Direct, Hamill was on a recent episode of ITV's This Morning, where the legendary actor revealed his character's name was initially Luke Starkiller, but was later changed to Luke Skywalker.
Mark Hamill has admitted that he initially "hated" how Luke's last name was changed from Starkiller to Skywalker during production of STAR WARS. pic.twitter.com/timAhVdLI9
— Star Wars - The Direct (@StarWars_Direct) August 19, 2025
Hamill hated the change and was taken by surprise as he'd already filmed the scene in which Luke comes dressed as a stormtrooper to save Princess Leia Organa, his sister. Hamill says, "We shot the scene, 'I'm Luke Starkiller I'm here to rescue you.' I came back the next week and said, 'Why are we doing that scene again?' They said, 'Oh, they've changed your name.' I said, 'To what?' They said, 'To Skywalker.' Let's face it, Luke could use a little macho-ing up. It sounded like Luke Flyswatter, I hated it."
While Hamill thought the name lacked punch and didn't sound strong enough, the change proved to be a wise decision on George Lucas's part and was one of many changes Lucas made to A New Hope over the years. Lucas believed Starkiller gave a negative vibe to Luke's character and preferred Skywalker. In hindsight, Starkiller does seem a bit too heavy for a hero like Luke, who was a savior more than a killer.
Surprisingly, Mark Hamill had an issue with the change, given that the name Starkiller sounds too edgy and dark, and Luke was always meant to be a symbol of hope. George Lucas's understood his creation and the implications of his character's name. At times, a name is our first impression of a character, and you may hear a character's name before you've read or watched a work of fiction, and I believe that hearing the name Luke Starkiller wouldn't have the same positive impact as Luke Skywalker.
Although Mark Hamill has been vocal about his opinions of Luke Skywalker as a character and his involvement in Star Wars, I believe this is a story he should've kept to himself. He's not the only character who's a Skywalker, and not even the first in terms of Star Wars canon. The ultimate Skywalker is and will always be Anakin Skywalker, and before him, his mother, Shmi. With that said, it's intriguing to imagine the future of the name after Rey, and the origins of the name 'Skywalker' would make an interesting Star Wars story as well.
While Shmi Skywalker is the first canonical member of the Skywalker bloodline, I would love to know how she arrived on Tatooine, who her parents were, and whether there were any significant Skywalkers before Shmi and Anakin.
The 50th Anniversary Celebrations of Star Wars: A New Hope will be marked by a re-release of Episode IV on April 30th, followed by Star Wars Celebration in Los Angeles. More announcements regarding Lucasfilm's year-long celebration of Star Wars will be made closer to the anniversary.
Star Wars is streaming on Disney+.