The making of George Lucas’s Star Wars prequel trilogy was a monumental undertaking, requiring tough choices about what stayed in the final cut and what ended up on the cutting room floor. Fans are well aware of some deleted scenes, particularly those featuring Padmé Amidala’s early efforts to establish the Rebel Alliance. However, recent revelations suggest these are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the unused footage from the prequels.
Per ScreenRant, In a conversation with Chris Castellani, Star Wars stunt coordinator Nick Gillard revealed the astonishing scope of material left out of the prequel trilogy. According to Gillard, there’s enough unused footage from The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith to create "three more movies." He described "shed-loads of stuff," including an elaborate set depicting the Gungans’ home, which he called "one of the best sets [he’s] ever seen on Star Wars."
A different vision for the "Battle of the Heroes"
Among the most intriguing revelations is that there is an alternate version of the iconic "Battle of the Heroes" duel between Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi in Revenge of the Sith. Gillard offered a detailed description of this early version, which depicted a far more intense and visceral showdown.
In this version, Anakin nearly kills Obi-Wan on the riverbank, rather than dismissing his warning about the high ground. This version of the scene involves Anakin attempting to decapitate Obi-Wan only for the Jedi Master to summon his lightsaber and deflect the attack in a defensive move. The choreography led to Obi-Wan dismembering Anakin in a single, fluid diagonal strike. As Castellani tells it:
"They came up with that big mast that fell over, that they swung and landed on something floating on the lava...they didn't, they landed on the bank. They landed from the swing, they landed on the bank. Immediately we have, that he grabbed him by the throat, Anakin grabs Obi from the throat, he disarms him, his lightsaber's on the floor, he's like, 'I'm really sorry, you have to be killed,' and launches his lightsaber to cut his head off, and Obi, in a defense move, turns out of it, summons his lightsaber to parry that blow that's coming for his head, in the turn goes through Anakin's arms. It worked beautifully, because neither of them could see each other, just for a second as they were turning. The upshot was that Obi went through his arms, and through his legs in the same move, a diagonal..."Nick Gillard
Gillard explained that this sequence, which involved both characters swinging onto a lava bank, was particularly powerful because of the split-second blindness they experienced during the action. The alternate ending raised the stakes for Obi-Wan, adding more emotional weight to his ultimate victory.
Why this version was scrapped remains unclear, though it may have been considered too intense for younger audiences. Regardless, the final version remains an unforgettable cinematic moment, but it's fascinating to imagine what might have been.
Will the prequel footage ever see the light of day?
With so much unused footage, fans might wonder if Lucasfilm could release a "special edition" of the prequels, like the updates made to the original trilogy. However, this seems unlikely. George Lucas' special editions of the original trilogy movies were intended to realize his original vision using technology that wasn’t available at the time, a challenge he didn't face with the prequels.
Still, the possibility of seeing these lost scenes someday is definitely tantalizing to fans like me. The deleted content we already have is cherished, and unveiling more would undoubtedly ignite excitement among the Star Wars fan community. Whether Lucasfilm chooses to share these hidden treasures remains to be seen, but the thought of three extra movies' worth of footage is enough to spark endless speculation.
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h/t ScreenRant