Some of the controversial moments in The Final Jedi virtually occurred earlier in a beloved Star Wars present. The 2017 film proved to be deeply divisive, from the best way it dealt with the story of Luke Skywalker to the Holdo Maneuver. The latter concerned the Resistance’s Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo making the last word sacrifice by taking a cruiser into lightspeed whereas flying it into the First Order’s flagship. Her sacrifice helps the surviving Resistance forces escape.
On the Star Wars Rebels rewatch podcast Pod of Riot, Rebels author Henry Gilroy revealed that he pitched an identical concept for the season 3 finale of the animated collection. Throughout this episode, the Riot’s Commander Jun Sato rams his ship into one of many Empire’s Interdictor cruisers. Sato sacrifices his life, however the destruction of the Interdictor cruiser permits Ezra Bridger to leap to hyperspace and get the Riot the help they want through the Battle of Atollon.
Gilroy explains that he pitched Sato leaping to lightspeed when ramming into the Interdictor cruiser, simply as Holdo does in The Final Jedi. He continued pitching the concept till he was instructed that he couldn’t do it, though he was not given a motive.
He was not allowed to learn The Final Jedi‘s script forward of time, so it wasn’t till seeing the Holdo Maneuver within the launched film that he realized this will need to have been the explanation why his pitch was rejected. He additionally wonders whether or not his concept ended up influencing the Holdo Maneuver within the completed movie. Take a look at his feedback beneath:
Finish of season 3, I had Sato blast by means of the Imperial forces by leaping to lightspeed. He blasted by means of to clear the best way for the rebels to flee. I stored pitching it, and so they wouldn’t inform me no, and so they wouldn’t say sure, and so they lastly stated, “No, you’ll be able to’t do this” and I’m like, “Why not?” and so they wouldn’t inform me till I noticed The Final Jedi. So, I’m at all times questioning, did I pitch that and did it get used, or… I by no means acquired a proof as a result of I wasn’t in a position to learn The Final Jedi script.
The season 3 finale of the Star Wars animated present was launched on March 25, 2017, months forward of The Final Jedi‘s theatrical debut on December 15 of the identical yr. Resulting from Rebels being an animated present, Sato doing a model of the Holdo Maneuver seemingly would not have been as controversial because it was in a live-action film seen by a wider viewers.
With quite a few Star Wars motion pictures, exhibits, novels, comics, and video video games within the works, the franchise needs to be cautious about not repeating the identical inventive beats throughout numerous initiatives. That is a part of the duty of the Lucasfilm Story Group, who help creators with their tales and assist preserve the consistently increasing continuity of the Star Wars canon.
Within the closing model of the Star Wars Rebels season 3 finale, Sato could not have jumped to lightspeed anyway, as Interdictor cruisers stop ships from leaping to lightspeed or pulls them out of it. His closing act serves the identical goal as Holdo’s in The Final Jedi, although, as they sacrifice themselves to assist their fellow rebels combat on and in the end save the galaxy from tyranny.