The Killer Darth Vader Scene You Didn’t See in ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’

Ben Mendelshon’s Director Krennic nearly met a different fate

darth vader krennic rogue one a star wars story
LucasFilm

Darth Vader might have been even more bad ass in “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.”

Screenwriter Gary Whitta has revealed that a bonus Darth Vader scene near the end of the film ended up being dropped from the storyline, according to a new interview he did with EW.

Ben Mendelshon’s Director Krennic almost met a different fate, too. (Spoilers ahead!)

Instead of being killed by the Death Star beam — which is what happens in the final cut — an alternate take had Krennic far enough away from the impact that he’d have been covered by debris, barely surviving. It would have been one of the closing scenes of the film, and he would have been rescued by Imperial rescue forces.

“They tore him out of the rubble and they brought him back,” Whitta said, describing the cut scene. “When they’re going over the ruins, he somehow survived… It’s a bit of a reach, which is why it isn’t in the finished film.”

“He survived the blast and they pulled him up and brought him to the Star Destroyer to report to Vader,” Whitta added. “He’s all beat up, his cape’s all torn up and stuff, and he thinks he has survived.”

What comes next is both devastating and sort of triumphant, given the fact that Krennic is highly unlikable.

“Vader kills him for his failure,” Whitta revealed.

An individual with knowledge of the project also confirmed to TheWrap that the Darth Vader scene that did end up in the final film was added during the film’s series of reshoots that took place last summer.

Director Gareth Edwards had always intended to bring Vader back in some form, likely in a cameo capacity.

But the villain’s big scene didn’t happen until John Gilroy, along with his brother Tony (writer), boarded the project to work on the film’s reshoots.

Clearly, it was the right choice as the scene has been a huge hit with fans.

“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” hits Digital HD on March 24 and then Blu-ray and DVD on April 4.

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