Chris Evans and Mark Hamill Weigh in on if a Lightsaber Could Cut Through Captain America's Shield

Which is stronger, a lightsaber from the Star Wars universe or Captain America's classic vibranium [...]

By Nicole Drum

Which is stronger, a lightsaber from the Star Wars universe or Captain America's classic vibranium shield from Captain America: The First Avenger? That's the question that has triggered a debate on Twitter this week and now Mark Hamill and Chris Evans are both weighing in.

Before we hop into Hamill and Evans' thoughts on the matter, a little context to this hot topic. Recently, someone on Twitter posted a photo of a toy Captain America shield alongside a Star Wars toy lightsaber along with a sticky note question: "My son just asked the toughest question that I've ever had to answer as a father... 'Can a lightsaber cut through Captain America's shield?'"

While the internet is torn on this matter, Luke Skywalker actor Hamill and Captain America actor Evans appear to agree -- yes.

"In the #MarvelUniverse - NO, In the #StarWarsUniverse - Luke wouldn't fight a hero, but if asked to do so, he could cut it into a million little pieces," Hamill wrote. Evans then responded to Hamill's tweet, agreeing that the lightsaber could in fact cut the shield -- with a twist.

"Foolish. Now I have vibranium ninja stars," Evans wrote.

Captain America with vibranium ninja stars? Someone get this man those instead of a shield. All joking aside, though, the question of shield versus lightsaber is one that's been addressed before with science. In 2016 Nerdist's "Because Science w/Kyle Hill" tackled the question by looking at the closest real-world equivalents to both items. They determined that while a lightsaber wouldn't cut through Captain America's shield, it would eventually melt it. In theory the melted areas of the shield could then be split apart as though it had been cut through.

Of course, even if a lightsaber really could cut the shield and the idea of Captain Americawith a million vibranium ninja stars is pretty cool, it's unlikely that we'll get to see Luke Skywalker take a crack at the shield anytime soon. The Jedi Master died at the end of Star Wars: The Last Jedi and beyond that, Captain America no longer has his original shield in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In Avengers: Infinity War, T'Challa/Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) outfitted Captain America with a brand-new shield outfitted with some cool Wakandan tech courtesy of Shuri. Lightsabers may be cool, but we can't promise they'd hold up well against her incredible advancements.

What do you think? Do you think a lightsaber can cut Captain America's shield? Weigh in with your opinion in our comments below!

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