In the Star Wars movie saga, the heroes and villains may be on opposite sides of the Light vs Dark Sides of the Force, but these two sides aren't total opposites after all. Even if their goals, philosophies, and methods differ greatly, many Sith Lords and Jedi Knights have common ground, especially for historic Force users like Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader and Kylo Ren.
In the main Star Wars movies, at different phases of his life, Luke Skywalker faced his cyborg father Darth Vader and even his own nephew, Kylo Ren, in exciting battles of Light vs Dark. Luke gave it his all to fight and defeat these villains, but he still has a lot in common with them. This common ground sometimes changed things for the better and even saved lives.
10 Hearing The Call Of The Dark Side
The Dark Side isn't stronger than the Light, but it's far more tempting because the Dark Side is all about natural human emotions such as fear, anger and hate, as Master Yoda once explained. No matter a Force user's lifestyle or training, they can't help feeling these things, Luke Skywalker included.
Like Darth Vader before him and Kylo Ren after him, Luke Skywalker heard the Dark Side's call, such as when he fought an illusionary Vader on Dagobah that was actually him. Later, Luke nearly lost himself to anger and the Dark Side when Vader threatened Leia.
9 Overcoming The Dark Side In The End
Luke, his father, and his nephew all overcame the Dark Side in the end, albeit in slightly different ways. Anakin Skywalker and Ben Solo both completely fell to the Dark Side, and they assumed new identities until they got redeemed and returned to their Jedi selves.
Luke didn't need redemption, but he still overcame the Dark Side in a more general sense when he refused to kill Vader out of anger aboard the second Death Star. Luke and his villains all heard the Dark Side's call, but in the end, the Dark Side was vanquished in their hearts.
8 Losing A Lightsaber & Needing A Replacement
Lightsabers are highly important for Sith Lords and Jedi Knights alike, though these incredible weapons can still be replaced, and often are. Luke Skywalker and his principal antagonists, Darth Vader and Kylo Ren, each lost a lightsaber and then used a new one later.
Luke lost his blue lightsaber on Cloud City, so he built a green-bladed one in 1983's Return of the Jedi. Meanwhile, Anakin lost his lightsaber on Mustafar and built a red-bladed version, and Kylo Ren threw away his own red-bladed lightsaber, switching to a blue-bladed one for the final battle on Exegol.
7 Having Family Drama
It's no coincidence that Luke Skywalker and his two greatest villains each have family drama, since they are all in the same tragic Skywalker family. Luke, Darth Vader, and Kylo Ren all have serious baggage concerning one another, such as Vader's famous "No, I am your father" scene in 1980's The Empire Strikes Back.
Luke and his villains have drama with other family members, too. Luke clashed with his adoptive aunt and uncle about leaving Tatooine behind, for example, and Anakin fell to the Dark Side because he feared losing his wife during childbirth. Then there's Kylo Ren, who had serious drama with his father, Han Solo.
6 Growing Up Without A Father
While Ben Solo ran away from his mother and father to become Kylo Ren under Supreme Leader Snoke's tutelage, Luke and Darth Vader completely lacked fathers growing up. In fact, Anakin Skywalker literally had no father, and was raised by his single mother, Shmi.
Luke did have a living father growing up, but Vader was the last person in the galaxy who should raise him. The Larses did their best to raise Luke and they deserve credit for it, but even so, Luke longed to learn more about his biological father -- until he tragically did on Cloud City.
5 Growing Up In Obscurity
Luke Skywalker grew up on a remote moisture farm on Tatooine, and he felt like he was at the furtherst corner of the galaxy. A generation earlier, his father Anakin felt the same way, since he too was raised on the harsh, forgettable desert world Tatooine.
Luke and Darth Vader both know the frustration of living so far away from everything and everyone else, and they longed for adventure and new meaning in their lives. They both succeeded, but it also brought immense pain, suffering, and drama.
4 Abandoning The Jedi Cause
Even if Luke Skywalker never fell to the Dark Side or killed any Jedi Knights, he still abandoned the Jedi Order, just like Vader and Kylo Ren. These three characters turned on the Jedi cause for different reasons, but they all did it, and they usually regretted it, too.
Luke abandoned the Jedi because he scorned the Order's stubborn arrogance, and he also wished to end the destructive cycle of the Light and Dark Sides clashing. Vader, meanwhile, was manipulated by Darth Sidious during Order 66, and Ben Solo destroyed Luke's new Jedi academy and fled one fateful night.
3 Being An Excellent Pilot
A handful of Star Wars characters are famed for being excellent pilots, including non-Force users like Poe Dameron and Han Solo. Luke Skywalker is also an incredible pilot, as he proved during the Death Star battle for Yavin, and he's also skilled at piloting a T-16 Skyhopper.
Darth Vader was also a stellar pilot throughout his life, from the battle of Naboo to the chaotic Clone Wars to the Galactic Civil War. Kylo Ren was also a starfighter ace, expertly flying his deadly TIE Silencer in the sequel trilogy to devastating effect against the Resistance fleet.
2 Giving Their Lives To Save The Day
Luke, Vader, and Kylo Ren all sacrificed themselves to save the galaxy from evil, which often involved redemption and difficult decisions. Darth Vader was the first, turning on Darth Sidious to save his son from certain death at Sidious' hands.
In the sequel era, Luke gave his own life to project his Force image on Crait, buying the Resistance time to flee the planet and survive to rebuild later. Finally, Kylo Ren redeemed himself back to Ben Solo the Jedi and used the Force to restore Rey's life at the expense of his own.
1 Becoming A Force Ghost
Some Jedi can become one with the Force and become a Force Ghost. Obi-Wan did this when he died in 1977's A New Hope and appeared in the next two movies to support Luke with his words, and in Return of the Jedi, Obi-Wan's Force Ghost appeared alongside Yoda's and Anakin's.
Luke Skywalker owed a lot to Obi-Wan's Force Ghost, and he paid it forward in the sequel trilogy. After he died in 2017's Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Luke returned as a Force Ghost to support and advise Rey from beyond the grave, and he was more optimistic about it than ever.