Return of the Jedi Gets a New Ending

[Smacktalks]

Han Solo? Dead. Luke Skywalker? Walking off into the sunset.

At least that's how Return of the Jedi would have ended for Gary Kurtz, George Lucas' former collaborator and producer on the first two Star Wars films.

While attending Star Wars Celebration V in Orlando, FL, Kurtz, who parted ways with Lucas and the Force after the release of Empire Strikes Back due to that ol' chestnut "creative differences", revealed what he and Lucas originally planned for Episode VI.

Kurtz told The LA Times: "We had an outline and George changed everything in it. Instead of bittersweet and poignant he wanted a euphoric ending with everybody happy."

The story that Kurtz wanted to tell would have "presented the Rebel forces in tatters, Leia grappling with her new duties as queen and Luke walking off alone like Clint Eastwood in the spaghetti westerns."

Kurtz went on to say that the original idea had Luke and pals rescuing a kidnapped Han Solo, as they do in the original film, but the outcome of that rescue would be different. "[Han] would then die in the middle part of the film in a raid on an Imperial base," Kurtz said. "George then decided he didn't want any of the principals killed. By that time there were really big toy sales and that was a reason."

I liked the ending to Jedi when I was younger but when I rewatch it now I cant stand the Ewok fight at the end so i'd have liked to see how this ending would have played out. That said, you cant kill Han.