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The dialogue used in The Empire Strikes Back’s shooting script in place of “No, I am your father” would have changed everything about Star Wars.
The climactic plot twist in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back is probably the biggest reveal in cinematic history. Before the Star Wars sequel’s release in 1980, no one could have realistically predicted the franchise’s black-clad antagonist, Darth Vader, was actually the father of its young hero, Luke Skywalker. That development was so unexpected by audiences not only because of Vader’s build-up as the ultimate villain, but also because of the level of secrecy surrounding the film’s production.
According to Mark Hamill, the shooting script used for The Empire Strikes Back didn’t contain the now-iconic, but often misquoted, line, “No, I am your father.” That secret was on a completely need-to-know basis, so the scene was filmed with another line in its place. Originally, Vader said, “You don’t know the truth. Obi-Wan killed your father.” That was a ruse to ensure Luke’s true parentage remained secret until the film’s release. However, it’s worth thinking about how that reveal might have affected the Star Wars franchise.
At that point in the story, Luke believed — because Obi-Wan Kenobi told him — that his father was a Jedi hero of the Clone Wars who was killed by Darth Vader. However, if Luke’s father were a heroic Jedi and Obi-Wan killed him, that would make the Rebellion’s “only hope” a villain. It’s a watershed moment in the story, and one of the ultimate “what if…” scenarios. An evil Obi-Wan is an intriguing idea, so let’s take a look at might happen if Obi-Wan had killed Anakin Skywalker — or, at least the version of Anakin that Luke believed his father to be.
To clarify, in this scenario, Darth Vader and Luke’s father would be two separate individuals, because the big reveal in The Empire Strikes Back never happened. So, Uncle Owen was right all along: Old Ben was a sorcerer and a mad man who wasn’t on Tatooine to watch over Luke. Rather, the old hermit was, presumably, lying in wait. Then, when the time was right, Obi-Wan sprang his trap, killed Luke’s caretakers and sent the impressionable teen on a contrived quest that would leave him in the clutches of his former apprentice, Darth Vader.
With the ultimate goal of drawing Luke to the dark side of the Force, Kenobi simply made up the story about Vader killing Luke’s father. It was a necessary step, because Luke needed something to hate, an essential step in his fall to the dark side.
From there, the entire franchise would have been very different, of course. There would be no need for an Emperor, because Vader would have been Luke’s master, and redemption — if even possible at that point — would have taken another path. Maybe Luke would have remained a hero, or perhaps the knowledge of an evil Obi-Wan would have ruined his fragile view of the Jedi.
Clearly, this is all hypothetical, but it would be an intriguing story to see play out. The prospects of a prequel trilogy featuring Obi-Wan’s dark side backstory would be amazing. Nevertheless, if that had happened, Star Wars just wouldn’t be the same. So, while it would have been cool to have a villainous Obi-Wan, it’s far better that it never happened.
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