If Only These Deleted Scenes from The Force Awakens Had Made It In

I’ve got good news and bad news. First, the bad news: J.J. Abrams doesn’t plan to release an extended edition of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The good news? SlashFilm has a list of 20 descriptions of deleted scenes from the film, so if we all work together, we can use our imaginations to picture what it would’ve been like to see them. If only we could see them … sigh. Anyway, spoilers to follow!

We’ve already heard some examples of ideas that got left behind over the course of making The Force Awakens, such as the original plan to make Snoke a female villain. Now we know a handful of other examples of times that would-be Star Wars heroines should’ve been given a little bit more on-screen action.

(image via Pinterest)

Do you remember seeing a brief glimpse of Maisie Richardson-Sellers on a crowded balcony, just before the First Order blasted Hosinian Prime with their Starkiller base? It did seem like the camera lingered on her face and placed her in the shot prominently, didn’t it? Unusual choice, given that we had no clue who she was. Turns out that her character did have a name: Korr Sella. In the novelization of The Force Awakens, we learn that General Organa sent Korr Sella to the Galactic Senate to appeal to them and “make her case for the Senate to take direct action against the First Order.” It’s a damn shame that this scene didn’t end up in the film, as it would have provided us with a little more explanation about the shifting dynamics between the various political factions. It also might have explained some of the film’s weirder plot holes, such as, “Why aren’t more people worried about the First Order?”

Originally, Rey was supposed to ask BB-8, “Who is Luke Skywalker?” This was the image that got J.J. Abrams interested in the film in the first place — he liked the idea of a teenage girl not knowing about Luke’s history, just as real modern-day kids might not be as familiar with the original Star Wars universe. Rey and Finn serve as our way in to that world; as they learn about their history, so too do we. In later revisions of the draft, though, Rey’s line changes slightly; she has heard of Luke Skywalker, but she says, “I thought he was just a myth.” That might be closer to how our generation sees Luke Skywalker, anyway.

I’ve already written about this cut scene which originally appeared in the trailer, in which Maz handed Leia Luke’s lightsaber. Not only was Maz Kanata supposed to end up at the Resistance base with the rest of the gang, she also originally had Force powers! In an earlier version of the film, Maz got to use those powers to help aid against the First Order’s attack. It’s a damn shame this got cut.

Here’s another scene missing from Maz Kanata’s castle/cantina/whatever-you-wanna-call-it. Apparently in an earlier version of the film, Unkar Plutt — the grumpy alien junk haggler played by Simon Pegg — showed up to confront Rey for stealing the Millennium Falcon from his scrapyard. In the version of the scene from the novelization, Unkar and Rey get into a physical altercation that Rey almost loses — until Chewie steps in and rips Unkar’s arm off. It makes sense that this scene would get cut for time, although it might have been interesting to see an early scene in which Rey is still learning how to think fast on her feet. Since it’s in the novelization, I guess we can assume it’s still canon!

(image via StarWarsPost)

When Rey and Leia meet at the very end of the movie, they originally had a longer conversation. This got sliced down for pacing reasons. Here’s the version from the book, though:

“I’m proud of what you’re about to do,” she told the girl. Rey replied in all seriousness. “But you’re also afraid. In sending me away, you’re—reminded.” Leia straightened. “You won’t share the fate of our son.” “I know what we’re doing is right. This is how it has to be. This is how it should be.” Leia smiled gently, reassuringly. “I know it, too. May the Force be with you.”

Excuse me, I think I have something in my eye.

Anyway! You’ll notice that I didn’t mention any missing scenes featuring Captain Phasma. What gives? I was so sure there had to be a scene missing with Chewie throwing her in the trash compactor — and perhaps a scene of her escaping that whole ordeal? But there’s no mention of it in Slashfilm’s roundup. I’m just going to assume it happened.

Which of these scenes do you most wish had made it into the final cut? All of them, right?

(via Slashfilm)

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