To this day, Darth Vader’s infamous “hallway scene” fromRogue One: A Star Wars Storyremains one of the film’s standout moments. Interestingly, it seems that most movies with a “hallway scene” tend to share a similar situation. Many fans are likely already aware that this particular scene was added rather late in the movie’s production. But what they may not know is that another potentially gripping scene featuring the Dark Lord of the Sith was cut during production.
Hal Hickel, animation director at Industrial Light & Magic (the VFX studio that inspired countlessothers to take a crack atStar Wars), tweeted out a possibly unfamiliar image of Vader, calling it a “Roguememory.” The shot shows the imposing villain silhouetted against a large screen in a dark room while an unidentified figure stands off to the side in shadow. Eagle-eyed fans with particularly sharp memories may recognize the shot fromRogue One’s earlier trailers, and it turns out the scene wasn’t just created for the promotional value.
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Hickel responded to a fan’s reply to the image, where the question “Was there a scene actually shot here or just this shot for the trailer?” was posed. “Yes,” Hickel replied. “There was a conversation between Vader and Tarkin that ended up out of the film.” Tarkin was famously recreated in the computer-generated likeness of late actor Peter Cushing, who played the character in 1977’sStar Wars: A New Hope. But in the final version ofRogue One, Vader and Tarkin never ended up interacting despite their extensive-time sharing the screen in the original film.
The shot itself may also look a bit familiar to long timeStar Warsfans, as the large retro-looking screen appears to mirror one shown inA New Hope, specifically when Tarkin and the other officers onthe Death Starare observing the battle over Yavin IV. Naturally, things didn’t turn out all that well for the Imperial officers involved, but this could suggest that Vader was originally intended to appear on the Death Star itself inRogue Onerather than simply on his base of fiery brooding on the planet Mustafar.
In a world begging for newStar Warsinformation, this is likely a tiny but welcome thirst quencher for some fans. Even though there are several newStar Warsprojects currently in the works, such as aspin-off toRogue Onefeaturing Cassian Andor, details on them are scarce, leaving enthusiasts to scrounge for whatever they can get. Certain productions likethe upcomingKenobiseries on Disney Plusare the sources of endless speculation, so every little bit helps.
Of course, the bright side is that this means there’s plenty ofStar Warscontent to go around, even if it will take a bit to get here. So hopefully fans can exercise a bit of patience while waiting for their next fix in a galaxy far, far away.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Storyis now available on Disney Plus.
