With the arrival this weekend of The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants, Mark Hamill has been capping off a very busy 2025 with promotion for the movie, which included amongst many other appearances a great skit on Jimmy Kimmel, and here he chats with Variety about SpongeBob, Star Wars (“Now I’m just a fan“) and the future of AI and future Luke Skywalker appearances (“I guess I’m gonna have to talk to my family”).
“It’s one of those things where there’s a disconnect between the fan world and myself, in the sense that every actor does the job, and when the job is completed, they move on to the next project. They don’t really hang on to it. And yet, “Star Wars” is such a vital ongoing franchise. [Disney] is doing really well, and obviously, they’ve done more material since I left. But I had my time. Now I’m just a fan. I love “Rogue One,” “Mandalorian,” “Andor.” They’re doing great without me.”
Hamill was also asked about the ever-evolving potential for AI to allow characters looking like the actors who originated them to live on, even after their passing, and Hamill has thoughts on that.
“It’s fascinating to see it develop, and I’m also apprehensive about how it will be used. The story of the AI-generated actress that got signed by a major agency is mind-boggling. Is she going to stay 33, or whatever her age is, forever? It’s obviously hard to predict the future, but I guess I’m gonna have to talk to my family about if they want me to be in a “Star Wars” movie 30 years from now after I’m gone.”
