It could be hard for us to imagine witnessing an alternate universe where Luke Skywalker’s path to Jedi knighthood is fraught with even greater trials. On that note, did you know that in a scrapped storyline from Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, Luke narrowly escaped a grim fate at the hands of Darth Vader? Mark Hamill starred as Luke Skywalker, and Harrison Ford assumed the role of Han Solo, among other notable cast members.
Insights from the saga reveal fascinating what-if scenarios, such as one in which Luke’s lightsaber contained a hidden crystal (with critical secrets) that failed to see the light of day. But perhaps most shocking is the notion that Darth Vader, sensing Luke’s growing command of the Force, nearly ended our hero’s journey prematurely with a telepathic choke—thwarted only by the quick actions of the loyal R2-D2.
A Forgotten Star Wars Idea: Luke Skywalker’s Near-Fatal Encounter with Darth Vader
When we think of Luke Skywalker’s journey to becoming a Jedi Knight in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, we often remember the iconic scenes of his training with Master Yoda and his battle against Darth Vader. But did you know that his path to Jedi-hood could have been a lot more tumultuous?
As we learned from Wired, in a canceled Star Wars idea that never made it to the final film, Darth Vader almost choked Luke Skywalker to death using the Force. Yes, the early stages of planning for The Empire Strikes Back included the concept of Luke’s lightsaber containing a hidden crystal with encrypted information, such as the coordinates of Yoda’s planet. This would have added a new layer of intrigue to Luke’s storyline.
To make matters worse, Luke would have faced humiliation when he couldn’t use the Force to defend against an attack by ice monsters on the rebel’s Hoth base. Han Solo would have delivered a harsh blow, telling Luke, “You’re not a Jedi knight, and you never will be.”
Meanwhile, Darth Vader, sensing that Luke had used the Force to destroy the Death Star, saw him as a threat. With a new wannabe Jedi on the scene, Vader attempted to choke Luke using telepathy, nearly ending his life. It was only thanks to the quick thinking of R2-D2, who jumped the ship into hyperspace and brought Luke to Yoda’s planet, that he survived the encounter.
While these dramatic twists and turns would have certainly added an extra layer of tension to Luke’s journey, ultimately they were cut from the final draft.
Mark Hamill’s Brush with Death: A Turning Point for The Empire Strikes Back
Mark Hamill portrayed the young Luke Skywalker in George Lucas’ science fiction epic Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, which brought him international acclaim in 1977. Talks about a sequel quickly began following the huge success of the revolutionary epic, with Mark Hamill returning to his game-changing role as Skywalker in The Empire Strikes Back.
Things didn’t always go as planned, though. But Hamill was lucky to be in the sequel at all after suffering a horrific car accident that broke his left cheekbone and nose (see Telegraph). The actor has always been very forthcoming about the events that led up to the near-death experience. In 1978, he told Gossip Magazine:
What happened was that I was on the wrong freeway. I was way out in the sticks somewhere and there were no cars and no traffic, thank God. I was going about 65-70 mph … I was speeding, going too fast … and what happened, I think, was that I tried to negotiate an off-ramp and lost control, tumbled over, and went off the road.
In addition, the actor, 72, revealed in the interview that he was expected to be on set the following day for some post-pickup shoots. Lucas used a double, so Hamill’s face was not visible in any of the shots.
Of course, everyone, including George Lucas, was happy that Hamill lived to tell the story of a galaxy far, far away. But the director also realized he would need to rewrite the script to take into consideration the dramatic change in his leading actor’s appearance.
Stream The Empire Strikes Back on Disney+.
