#Darth Vader’s Big Rogue One Scene Hits Different with a Blue Lightsaber

The Disney era of Lucasfilm has been, to say the very least of it, a mixed bag. But one of the most successful moments in this new era of the Star Wars franchise was 2016’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. It was the first standalone entry in the long-running franchise that proved to a hit both critically and commercially. One of the most memorable moments comes at the end of the movie when Darth Vader absolutely tears through a group of Rebels to try and recover the Death Star plans. But what would it look like if the man formerly known as Anakin Skywalker were holding a blue or green lightsaber during this sequence? We need no longer wonder.

YouTuber Yusi-D-Jordan decided to spend some time re-editing the climactic scene in question. While keeping everything else the same, they changed Darth Vader’s lightsaber from its signature red to blue, much like the one Anakin used to use. Amazingly, this changes the feel of the scene quite a bit. There is something menacing about the red lightsaber in the otherwise poorly lit hallway. There is equally something unsettling, at least probably for hardcore Star Wars fans, about seeing the Sith Lord cutting his way through members of the Rebel Alliance with a lightsaber that would be associated with the Jedi. The same thing is done yet again in the video but with a green lightsaber, not unlike Luke’s from Return of the Jedi.
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It is, if nothing else, a reminder of just how impactful this scene is. Having James Earl Jones return to voice the character was important but we never truly got to see Darth Vader go off like that in a movie. It was the subtext that always let people know what he was capable of. Director Gareth Edwards gave Star Wars fans definitive proof. Amazingly though, the scene wasn’t originally in the movie and was only added at the last minute.

As has been well documented, Rogue One had a complicated production that required lots of rewrites and reshoots. Toward the end of the process, the idea to add another scene with Vader was pitched. Amazingly, Lucasfilm and Gareth Edwards were able to put this whole thing together just a few months before the release. Ultimately, that was the right decision as it is arguably the most memorable scene from the entire movie. And if it is the last time we see Darth Vader in live-action, it’s one heck of a send-off.

That said, there have been rumors floating around that Hayden Christensen is set to appear in the long-gestating Obi-Wan Kenobi series, which is currently in the works for Disney+ with Ewan McGregor reprising his role from the prequels. Whether or not we’ll get to see Christensen doing anything this cool, even if it does happen, remains to be seen. Though the Rogue One scene, as it exists, would be tough to top. Be sure to check out the re-edit from Yusi-D-Jordan’s YouTube channel.

Topics: Rogue One, Star Wars