Star Wars: 14 Crazy Rumours Lucasfilm Started About The Empire Strikes Back In 1980

12. Han Solo Fights Darth Vader And They "Fuse"

Reading these rumours, it's striking how undefined the key mechanics of the galaxy were at this point, from who could use the Force to how a lightsaber worked. One take on the final fight Miller seeded had Han take on Darth Vader in a duel and... well, you'll see:

Near the climax, Han Solo crosses light sabers with Darth Vader. Although Han doesn't really know how to use the weapon, he's doing fairly well when suddenly the light beams are "fused" together and Han's and Vader's "life forces" are intermingled. Luke has a chance to come to the rescue but if he kills Vader, might he not kill his friend too?

This sort of moral conundrum really played into the more complex angle they were going for with Empire, sure, but there's no escaping that it's pretty dumb - nobody could have bought this, right?