8 Scenes That Would Have Ruined The Original Star Wars Trilogy

6. My Dinner With Vader - The Empire Strikes Back

Remember the scene in The Empire Strikes Back when Lando Calrissian betrays Han Solo? Remember how it happens in that weird dining room and Han tries to shoot Darth Vader but fails because Darth Vader blocks it and thus he is subsequently captured? Imagine, if you will, that that didn't happen; that, instead of capturing Han and Leia and Chewbacca, Darth Vader just, you know, invited them to have dinner with him. Because that's what took place in the original Leigh Brackett draft of The Empire Strikes Back - instead of being outright villainous, a more relaxed, almost disillusioned Vader has dinner with our heroes and even half-apologises to Leia for acting like a jerk on the Death Star. In this version of events (which were removed when Lawrence Kasdan got involved with the screenplay), Han drinks a load of wine, too, which makes him even more obnoxious than usual, whilst Vader - who still plans to use Leia as bait in order to trap Luke - is depicted in a more positive light (not quite so evil and more of an entertainer). It's a good thing this scene was axed, because it only succeeds in rendering Vader as a sort of neutered version of the character we know. It's all kinds of depressing, really.