The Star Wars prequel trilogy has become an acquired taste among franchise fans, but there’s always been plenty to love amid its lowest points. Episode III — Revenge of the Sith is a decisive highlight, as beloved for its epic set pieces as its devastating story. Those two elements collided with the so-called Battle of the Heroes, a climactic duel between the stalwart Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen), his fallen padawan. Their clash on the planet of Mustafar has become a high point of the prequels; not only does it represent the fracturing of their bond as master and apprentice, but it sets the scene for Anakin’s physical transformation into Darth Vader.
It also marks a relative peak for the saga’s trademark lightsaber battles. As the Jedi were everywhere during the prequels, the trilogy boasts plenty of intricately choreographed duels, and the Battle of the Heroes is the most elaborate of them all. It wouldn’t be a stretch to call it the best fight in the franchise, but according to the prequels’ chief stunt coordinator, it could have been radically different — and darker.
Nearly 20 years after the Revenge of the Sith hit theaters, Star Wars stunt coordinator Nick Gillard has shared some behind-the-scenes secrets about the prequels. In a conversation with YouTuber Chris Castellani, Gillard broke down the original version of Battle of the Heroes, which would have made it into the film if not for a last-minute change.
In the theatrical cut, Anakin and Obi-Wan’s fight begins on a nondescript landing platform before the duo moves to a nearby balcony. From there, “they swung and landed on something floating in the lava,” Gillard explained. Their battle continued until Obi-Wan claimed “the high ground” on a nearby bank, gained an advantage over Anakin, and crippled him with a nasty slice.
The original sequence, however, was shorter and more intense. Rather than an extended battle across a river of lava, Anakin and Obi-Wan would have jumped straight from a higher platform onto the bank below. From there, Gillard explained, Obi-Wan would have dealt his final blow:
“Anakin grabs Obi by the throat. He disarms him, too: his lightsaber’s on the floor... and he says, ‘Listen, I’m really sorry, but it has to be this way.’ And he 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, [and] in the turn goes through Anakin’s arms... His arms got cut off and his legs got cut off at an angle.”
Per Gillard, the sequence “worked beautifully,” as both Anakin and Obi-Wan were caught in the heat of the moment. It’s not too dissimilar to what we get in Revenge of the Sith, but Gillard and his team apparently “hated” the extended version. “We campaigned to have it changed, but George was having none of it,” Gillard said.
The original version sounds brutal, and quite different in tone. Rather than Obi-Wan gaining the advantage and pleading for Anakin to surrender before reluctantly cutting him down, it sounds like he would have pulled a sick self-defense move to save his own life, leaving Anakin mauled without feeling too bad about it.
We’ll never know what might have been, but the extended duel on Mustafar we did get is iconic for a reason. The Battle of the Heroes ought to be a knock-down, drag-out fight that provides both Obi-Wan and Anakin with an outlet to express years of frustration. It’s not the kind of battle that just ends abruptly... not to mention that a lava river is too cool to pass up.
Gillard and his team undoubtedly worked hard on Revenge of the Sith, but at the end of the day, the final choice was Lucas’ to make. Given the love for the Battle of the Heroes, it’s clear he made the right one.
