“It took place 25,000 years before the first Star Wars film”: Man of Steel Writer’s Canceled ‘Origins of the Jedi’ Movie Can Bring Henry Cavill to Star Wars

George Lucas’ Star Wars films could have had competition from David Goyer’s now canceled script on the origins of the Jedi.

When you think of the Star Wars films, George Lucas is the immediate name that comes to mind. The pioneering efforts of the genius filmmaker created a new cinematic revolution in Hollywood that is still seen as the benchmark for all aspiring sci-fi directors today.
Hollywood filmmaker George Lucas (image credit: Joey Gannon/Wikimedia Commmons)
But Lucas could well have had competition in this space if popular novelist and screenplay writer David Goyer had gone through with his original script for a Star Wars film. The Man of Steel writer who is also known for his work in other Marvel and DC films, had written a story which was to have been helmed by none other than Guillermo Del Toro, but failed to materialize.

Man Of Steel Writer Had A Star Wars Script That Did Not See The Light Of Day

Star Wars and George Lucas are two words that are synonymous with each other. The iconic filmmaker’s vision brought forth a franchise that has attained cult status today through its technically advanced narratives that were way ahead of their time.
Man of Steel writer David Goyer with Henry Cavill (image credit: Sue Lukenbaugh/Wikimedia Commons)
Interestingly, apart from Lucas, an exciting original idea for a Star Wars film was envisioned by David Goyer who is known for his famous screenwriting efforts in Marvel and DC films like Man of Steel, Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy, and the Blade trilogy of the 90s and 2000s.

In an interview in the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Goyer stunned host Josh Horowitz by revealing that he had written a script on the origins of the Jedi, which was to have been helmed by Oscar-winning director Guillermo Del Toro. Elaborating on further details, he added,

I have an unproduced scriptment of an origins of the Jedi movie that I wrote, that took place 25,000 years before the first Star Wars film.

To put this into context based on the time period, Goyer’s narrative could have tackled the rise of the Prime Jedi who was the founder of the Jedi Order established around 25,025 BBY, and the first of his kind to ever use The Force (via Star Wars Fandom).

This piece of information also gives rise to some interesting speculations about who could hypothetically have played the Prime Jedi. With his towering personality as Superman and his swashbuckling swordsmanship in The Witcher, it is difficult to look past the aura of Henry Cavill as the ideal candidate if this project had come through.

All that’s left now is to fervently manifest this desire in a hope that the two Man of Steel collaborators could get to work together on this script.

This Star Wars Alternate Ending Wasn’t Approved By George Lucas

Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith culminated the trilogy with the iconic galactic battle between Anakin Skywalker aka Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi. In the duel on the volcanic planet of Mustafar, both characters are engaged in an intense tussle before Obi-Wan Kenobi uses a devastating move to severe Darth Vader’s legs and left arm before leaving him for dead near a lava flow.
This iconic fight in Revenge of The Sith almost had a different ending (image credit: LucasFilm)
Interestingly, this scene had an alternative ending that did not make the final cut despite both stars fighting for it to be used. Prolific stunt coordinator Nick Gillard who was responsible for all the action sequences in the Star Wars films, revealed that George Lucas remained undeterred by Ewan McGregor’s and Hayden Christensen’s insistence on using the ending.

This culmination could have reflected an accidental defeat of Darth Vader rather than the premeditated one that was depicted. Gillard described this scene that was not meant to be, in an interview with Star Wars Theory.

Anakin just grabbed [Obi-Wan] by the throat… He’s got him and Obi’s saber is down on the ground, and Anakin says, ‘I’m sorry it has to be this way, my master,’ and actually lets [the lightsaber] go.

This ending in retrospect, could have been a poetic culmination to the master-student relationship that could have also given it a very different nuance. As it turned out, the ending that ultimately featured in the film was a fitting finale that did justice to Lucas’ vision.