re: Report: Kathleen Kennedy soon to be out at Lucasfilm, Star Wars going the MCU route

Premise #1:
Luke's not dead, he's an immensely powerful Jedi Master who used the Force on weak-minded Imperial loyalists, to convince them the New Republic was gone, and thus diverted their interests elsewhere.
And yeah, he got quite a chuckle by disgracing Han and Leia, it was both a private joke on them, and intentional misdirection so their foes would underestimate them.
Problem solved

Premise #2: employ the Mandalorian as Iron Man, cornerstone of the new SWU. Just like Tony Stark popped in and out of every MCU tale, so also can the Mandalorian do so with the new Star Wars entities; disgruntled Rebel Alliance members who wanted the war to mean something. Discreet Jedi-types who laid low after Order 66 (Asoka, for example), who don't trust the new regime any more than the last. Career Republic/Imperial military types, soldiers who just did their jobs and saw things go crazy. Petty dictators, and petty benevolent leaders, who want independence from the bloat. The remnants of the various factions who first fought the Republic, some under real aspirations of something better.

All looking to carve out a space in the new galaxy, since there's clearly a vacuum where leadership once was.

An easy tie-in, going to of all places, Ep 8: the stable boy used the Force to get his broom.
Luke could do that, too, once Ben showed him. Who is teaching the kid? Who's hiding behind gambling and arms dealing, and actually has knowledge of the Force? ... a Jedi could become a damn successful casino owner, if he kept it subtle, while quietly manipulating things. And there ain't no Code anymore, it's every Jedi for himself now. Better to stay in the background, make some money in the process to divert suspicion, and groom the next generation.

Edit to add- Hell, it could be Mace Windu. Mangled and left for dead after Palpatine and Anakin rough him up. Anakin kills off the Trade Federation... but there were other groups. We saw the Techno-Union in the last episodes of Clone Wars. Now, they understand they're betrayed, and need a protector. You could do the Robocop thing with Mace, make him a cyborg.

Still strong in the Force, but by the time he's recovered, shite has hit the fan and he (and the Techno Union) need to go underground. And with all those cybernetics, why can't he still be alive 40, 50 years later?