Colin Trevorrow's Star Wars Episode 9

Most of us will remember Colin Trevorrow being removed from the helm of Star Wars Episode 9 or in a non-subtle way of saying it, fired by Kathleen Kennedy due to a clash of ideology of how the last Skywalker saga film should be made. The Star Wars fanbase had song since theorized that a different script was used by JJ Abrams for his 'Rise of Skywalker' film and that Trevorrow's script ended up somewhere in Kathleen Kennedy's trash can. 

Recently, a 'supposed' copy of Trevorrow's script was leaked into the cyberworld and got many fanboys giddy like schoolgirls. You see, there were miles of differences between Trevorrow's vision and what we've seen in The Rise of Skywalker (let's call it TROS hereinafter, it's easier on my fingers). Along with the leaked script were several concept arts that were supposed to be guides on how Trevorrow's film was gonna be.

The film was gonna be called 'Duel of the Fates', a clear throwback to the very first Episode 1 of the Skywalker Saga (a fitting title for the last film taken from the first film) and that the story was gonna be a lot more darker than what we've seen in TROS.

What's more astonishing is that Colin Trevorrow himself has CONFIRMED about the validity of both script and concept arts. So with any doubts removed, we can now safely say that the leaked script and concept arts are real and is reminder of how Episode 9 could've been a different beast altogether. 

I didn't opt to include the script here because I believe the lot of us do not have the time to read it line by line (if you do please summarize it for me!) but here's an animation done by one cool fan for the benefit of everyone who'd want to have visual accompaniments to Trevorrow's vision.


I can tell you that this is way darker than what we've seen on TROS for sure. Executions, suicide and mutilations seems to be the theme in Duel of the Fates (DOTF). In short, let me recap what we've seen in the video and bits and pieces from what I've read from the script:

1. An alien was executed by a freakin' lightsaber guillotine (what?!)

2. Kylo Ren's face got badly burned by a a surge of red lightning and later they went all 'Man in the Iron Mask' on him and placed a burning hot mask onto his face (ooooh, brutal!). This was also meant to be Kylo Ren's 'Vader' moment as the hot mask is lowered down ont his head and face.

3. Rey's eyes were blinded and she was literally blind when she fought Kylo at the climax of the story (how bout that for some 70s Kungfu spaghetti flick?)

4. General Hux, or 'Supreme Chancellor Hux' as he is now called in DOTF, commits suicide  via a Japanese seppuku after suffering a great loss at the hands of the Resistance with (get this!) Mace Windu's purple lightsaber which he kept at his office for decorative purposes.

5. Emperor Palpatine is truly dead and we only get a glimpse of him from a holo-message played by Kylo Ren. A message which then caused Kylo to meet a spider-like Force-sensitive creature whose name I've forgotten at this point in time. Kylo of course massacred the creature after getting some life-changing revelations to keep in line with the recurring brutal theme of DOTF's script.

6. Artoo was heavily damaged and this was supposed to be a fitting ending to the longest serving droid (apart from Threepio) in the Skywalker Saga.

7. Leia was supposed to be a central figure in DOTF and I can now understand why the script never really took off with Kathleen Kennedy given Carrie Fisher's untimely demise.

8. Luke Skywalker was going to make a physical appearance as a Force Ghost and was to fight Kylo Ren at the end of the film This would have been a PHENOMENAL cinematic scene as no force ghost has ever done this before.

9. Coruscant was supposed to be the main location of the final battle and supposedly scenes of parts of destroyed Coruscant was included. I would have loved to see  more scenes that included the city planet. 

10. Rey is now wielding a blue double bladed lightsaber akin to the one used by Darth Maul.

11. Finn and Rose would've played more pivotal roles in DOTF.

12. Finn was gonna give a rousing speech to a group of First Order Stormtroopers and eventually lead them to rebel against the FO, just like he did in The Force Awakens. I guess JJ Abrams gave Trevorrow's script a homage by including Jannah and her little band of deserters in TROS.

13. The First Order was going to be that destructive and brutal dictator of a government in DOTF and not some soft bad guys flying around in space like we've seen in The Last Jedi and TROS.


I may have missed some points but you'd get what I mean. Colin Trevorrow's script was meant to give us that great dark ending we've expected from the Skywalker Saga but I can now safely assume that Kathleen Kennedy's KPI from Disney meant that a more family-friendly movie was always favoured against Trevorrow's vision.

I leave you now with a serie of concept arts which were also leaked with the script. I love these because it reminds me a lot to Ralph McQuarrie's early art for George Lucas. Enjoy them and let me know what you think of the leaked scripts in the comment section below.





















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