Star Wars fans were generally pleased with how the Obi-Wan Kenobi series ended but did you know that the much hyped-up "rematch of the century" between Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen's respective characters had a completely different outcome?
If you may recall, the final battle between Obi-Wan and Vader saw the Sith Lord bury the Jedi Master in a pile of rubble but later on, Kenobi was able to rise to the occasion and give Vader his first defeat.
Turns out, Vader overcoming Kenobi was how their rematch originally ended and according to writer Stuart Beattie, the idea was to make Vader believe that Kenobi is actually dead which would have made his appearance in A New Hope all the more shocking.
Speaking with The Direct, Beattie explains: "In mine, he really did believe that Kenobi was dead at the end, which was the thing that allowed him to finally let Kenobi go and focus on ruling the galaxy with an iron fist. Because it always seemed that in [A New Hope] he was shocked when he was like 'I sense something, a presence I've not felt since...' Why do you stop talking to yourself? It's because you're that shocked, you know?"
Also Read: Star Wars Fans Have Mixed Feelings About Obi-Wan and Darth Vader's Finale Duel
While the entire fandom had mixed reactions to the finale's anticipated duel, I personally think Lucasfilm still pulled it off. I mean, it's not on par with their iconic face-off in Revenge of the Sith but I did appreciate the fact that it wasn't a complete rehash of it and it was well-executed.
I gotta say though, Stuart's original version of the duel would have made more sense but in hindsight, it makes Vader's victory in A New Hope mean a lot more because he finally vanquished his former master after several attempts.
All episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi are available for streaming on Disney+.
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