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Star Wars: Colin Trevorrow’s Episode IX Leaked Script Might Have Been Better Than ‘The Rise Of Skywalker’

Fans have gotten hold of what appears to be leaks from Colin Trevorrow's vision of Star Wars: Episode IX, which would have been called the Duel of the Fates.
Duel of the Fates

Colin Trevorrow was originally tasked with writing and directing Star Wars: Episode IX, and now it looks like his script may have gotten out to the public. Trevorrow ultimately left the project due to “creative differences.” Many dismissed the script as fan-fiction when it first started to surface, but reliable outlets have since come forward vouching for it.

Why Didn’t Colin Trevorrow Helm Star Wars: Episode IX?

Trevorrow spent two years crafting his version of Episode IX before being famously removed from the project in the wake of Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s firing from Solo: A Star Wars Story. After the removal of Lord and Miller, Kathleen Kennedy was worried about having the right team behind the camera. It was reported that Trevorrow had pitched his idea to the Lucasfilm President, Kathleen Kennedy, the Disney President, Alan Horn, and the Disney CEO Bob Iger. Once Trevorrow and his frequent collaborator Derek Connelly began to turn in drafts to Kennedy, she was unhappy with their submissions. Kennedy then brought in Jack Thorne, who wrote Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

Neither Kennedy and Trevorrow liked Thorne’s script so Trevorrow wanted to take another shot at penning the project but instead, he was let go by Kennedy. Rumors continue to float around what was the straw that broke the camel’s back was between Trevorrow and Lucasfilm, but one that jumps out is that Trevorrow wanted to keep Luke Skywalker alive – thus altering the ending to The Last Jedi. We’re not sure if that’s true or not, but it’s out there and it makes sense.

As we all know, JJ Abrams was then hired back along with Chris Terrio to helm Episode IX. Both Terrio and Abrams said they wouldn’t be taking any of Trevorrow’s ideas, and they were not joking. Based on the leak, Trevorrow’s ideas were very different than what we got in The Rise of Skywalker. Let’s explore Trevorrow’s ending to the Skywalker saga, shall we?

RELATED: HOW THE RISE OF SKYWALKER DEFEATED THE JJ CUT

The Title And Opening Crawl

Star Wars Duel of the Fates

The Rise of Skywalker is what we got, but Colin Trevorrow’s original title for the Star Wars finale was going to be Duel Of The Fates, which echoes what the fate of Rey and Kylo Ren would have been. It’s also a reference to John Williams’s theme in the Phantom Menace, which was used during the battle between Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Darth Maul. Here’s how the opening crawl would have read:

The iron grip of the FIRST ORDER has spread to the farthest reaches of the galaxy. Only a few scattered planets remain unoccupied. Traitorous acts are punishable by death.Determined to suffocate a growing unrest, Supreme Leader KYLO REN has silenced all communication between neighboring systems.Led by GENERAL LEIA ORGANA, the Resistance has planned a secret mission to prevent their annihilation and forge a path to freedom…

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Joe Deckelmeier

Joe Deckelmeier

Joe Deckelmeier is an editor and co-founder of The Illuminerdi, as well as a journalist for Screen Rant. He loves films, wrestling, and all manner of storytelling.