The death of Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars was originally supposed to be much more gruesome

According to one novel, Obi-Wan Kenobi died in Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope should have been more cruel.

No doubt, war of stars: Episode IV – A New Hope is one of the most beloved and iconic films of all time, packed with memorable moments such as the “who shot first?” debate between Han Solo and Greedo in the Mos Eisley Cantina on Tatooine, the destruction of the Death Star, and the injustice of Chewie not receiving the equally deserved medal awarded only to Luke Skywalker and Han Solo for saving the galaxy.

In case you missed it, we recently spoke with The Acolyteby Dafne Keen, Charlie Barnett and Rebecca Henderson.

We also had the fatal encounter between Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi, which led to Obi-Wan’s sudden death. At this point, we knew very little about the connection between these two characters, and Obi-Wan’s death seemed a little anticlimactic.

You could argue that Obi-Wan Kenobi wanted to die in that moment, but let’s be honest, it could have at least been a little more dramatic. Instead, what we got played out like one of those social media videos where dog owners pretend to disappear behind a blanket.

Compare this to the deaths of Darth Maul in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace and Count Dooku in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sithwho both lost some very important body parts in their demise. I know special effects and budgets must have been a factor in A new hope but surely you could have done something better than dropping a bathrobe on the floor, right?

As Looper reports, according to the novel version of A new hopeObi-Wan Kenobi is said to have suffered a far more gruesome death. In the section describing the encounter between Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi, it is stated that the man once known as Anakin Skywalker “lunged forward, feinted, then swung his saber downward in a fatal arc. It struck, cutting Kenobi cleanly in half.”

From the sounds of it, Obi-Wan Kenobi would have suffered a death just as gruesome as Darth Maul, which would undoubtedly have increased the PG rating. A new hope. Still, I’m a little surprised that in the many remasters released for this film over the years, George Lucas never attempted to re-edit this scene.

The latest Star Wars live-action product is The Acolyte now available to stream along with the entire film saga on Disney Plus.