8 Great Movies Saved By Ridiculously Last Minute Changes

3. Lucas Only Remembered Obi-Wan Had To Pick Up Anakin's Lightsaber In Reshoots - Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith

Even though the Star Wars Prequel Trilogy spent most of its seven hour runtime obsessed with tying into the original movies (rather than telling its own story), there's actually only a handful of events referenced in the first trilogy that actually needed to happen; Anakin becomes Vader, Luke and Leia are born, the Empire is created and the Jedi are exterminated. Everything else is up in the air. But even with such a short list of things he had to do, George Lucas still almost missed out a crucial moment essential to the franchise's narrative.

In A New Hope Obi-Wan gives Luke his father's lightsaber, saying "Your father wanted you to have this when you were old enough." Given the subsequent reveal that Anakin was Vader, it was assumed there was some twisting of words going on, but the impact of the baton getting passed was still there; it's one of Star Wars' most pivotal and memorable moments.

Yet, in the original cut of Revenge Of The Sith, Obi-Wan sliced Anakin up, watched him burn and just walked away, leaving the essential lightsaber (which is going to make a further reappearance in Star Wars: The Force Awakens) on the sands of Mustafar. It was only when pick-ups rolled around that Lucas realised his error (maybe he finally went back and fact-checked his script). He quickly added in a shot of Obi-Wan picking it up and the continuity was, in this moment, preserved.