The first Star Wars film, now known as Episode IV – A New Hope, set the tone for the entire film franchise that preceded it. It captured the attention and imagination of the audience, and they were fans ever since. What if the first film didn’t have some of the pivotal scenes it’s known for today? Could that have changed the story enough that viewers didn’t connect to the levels they did? Maybe so, and it almost was.
Please enable JavaScript
Mark Hamill and his Return of the Jedi helix lightsaber reunite in Pop Culture Quest Clip
When the film was shot, it was past its assigned shooting dates and creator George Luke he still needed to capture what we now know as the film’s opening scene. In 2020, Lucas explained to StarWars.com:
“The studio on ‘A New Hope’ just shut us out. There were a lot of things we didn’t do that I wanted to do. But we couldn’t finish the movie… We were after a week or two weeks and they said, ‘Well, we’ll cut you out.’ … I said, ‘Well, I didn’t shoot the beginning of the movie.’ You know, where Darth Vader comes in and there’s that battle and Princess Leia has a conversation with him. None of that had been filmed. And they said, ‘Well, we don’t care. Try making the movie without it.”
It’s insane! I know they were betting on this young director who had an idea for a film that was very different from anything they had ever seen before, but if someone tells you that he needs to shoot the opening scene of his film, you should probably let them. The scene in question shows Leah’s ship trying to outrun a star destroyer, only to be caught in a tractor beam and pulled into the star destroyer. It introduces us to C3PO, R2D2, Darth Vader and Princess Leah, and immediately jumps into the action! Without this scene, and seeing Leah give the Death Star plans to R2, the film would lack the solid narrative basis to move forward. This is the heart of the premise and there is no way to build without it.
It’s a good thing Lucas was able to pull off his opening scene without studio support. It’s funny to think how foolish those executives must have felt after seeing what Star Wars has become!
Via: /Movies
by Jessica Fisher
Source: Geek Tyrant
Lloyd Grunewald is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. He is a talented writer who focuses on bringing the latest entertainment-related news to his readers. With a deep understanding of the entertainment industry and a passion for writing, Lloyd delivers engaging articles that keep his readers informed and entertained.
