Return of the Jedi Almost Had Obi-Wan and Yoda Fighting the Emperor as Force Ghosts

It’s been over 35 years since Star Wars: Return of the Jedi was released in theaters, but folks are still sharing treasures from the original trilogy. Phil Szostak, a creative art manager for Lucasfilm, recently shared some pages from a rough draft of the third Star Wars movie from 1981, two years before its release. The old pages reveal that Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda almost did more than show up at the celebration on Endor.

“In George Lucas’ February 1981 rough draft of #ReturnoftheJedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Yoda return from ‘the netherworld’ to aid Luke Skywalker in his battle with the Emperor. The Jedi, including Luke’s father Anakin, are later seen resurrected at the Ewak [sic] celebration. #StarWars,” Szostak wrote.

Many people commented on the post:

“That Return of the Jedi draft is wild. I’ve been pushing the idea that JJ would lift the ‘spirits from the netherworld help the hero in the final battle’ idea for TROS for a while, but I guess we’ll find out in December,” @rohan_williams replied.

“My theory that Jedi can influence the Force from beyond the grave fits with this description. “More powerful than you can possibly imagine” = give Luke a helping hand via the Force,” @GuanoLad wrote.

“I know it’s a long shot but wouldn’t it be amazing if 3 generations of Skywalker’s, Anakin, Luke & Leia and Ben combine to take down the Emperor in #TheRiseofSkywalker….A Family reunited.” @MySaga_SW added.

While there’s no word on whether Hayden Christensen will be showing up as Anakin’s Force Ghost in the film, there are plenty other of confirmed cast members to look forward to in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. The movie is set to star a returning Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, and Billie Lourd. New cast members include Naomi Ackie, Richard E. Grant, and Keri Russell, and the returning veteran actors are Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, and Billy Dee Williams. According to the director, J.J. Abrams, Leia will be featured in the film using unreleased footage of Carrie Fisher from Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is expected to hit theatres on December 20th.