Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker was released to negative reviews at the end of 2019, and it was just weeks later that the screenplay and concept art from Colin Trevorrow's Episode IX leaked online. Titled Duel of the Fates, the consensus was that this version of the movie was vastly better than what J.J. Abrams delivered.
The stories of each character played out vastly differently, with Finn, for example, leading a rebellion on Coruscant in what looked like a truly epic revolution.
Talking to Happy Sad Confused, actor John Boyega expressed disappointment that Trevorrow didn't helm the final chapter in the Skywalker Saga and admitted he can't bring himself to read the screenplay. Reading between the lines, it seems he agrees that Duel of the Fates was the superior way to wrap this story up.
"I can’t read that one because I’ll be heartbroken, because I was...I had a sit down with Colin. I want to tell you, that’s one of the best Star Wars meetings I’d ever had because it felt like two nerds that were like, ‘Yes, that’s what we want to see!'" Boyega recalls. "And I saw the art, you know, Stormtrooper rebellion, I was like, that stuff was cold."
"Hopefully, Lucasfilm can give him an opportunity down the line to maybe work on something else," the actor continued. "Because ’I'm sure they would love to collaborate with him again in any capacity."
Given how hit-and-miss Trevorrow is as a filmmaker, it's hard to say how well he would have executed that script and concept art, but we do think his movie would have been better. Ultimately, Lucasfilm decided to try and placate fans with a movie that ultimately satisfied a very small minority.
Click on the "Next" button below for a
breakdown of Star Wars: Duel of the Fates!
The Title And Opening Crawl
Colin Trevorrow's Episode IX would have been titled Duel of the Fates, and that's seemingly a reference to the iconic piece of music that played over the battle between Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn, and Darth Maul in The Phantom Menace.
The opening crawl, meanwhile, was set to have read as follows:
The iron grip of the FIRST ORDER has spread to the farthest reaches of the galaxy. Only a few scattered planets remain unoccupied. Traitorous acts are punishable by death.
Determined to suffocate a growing unrest, Supreme Leader KYLO REN has silenced all communication between neighboring systems.
Led by GENERAL LEIA ORGANA, the Resistance has planned a secret mission to prevent their annihilation and forge a path to freedom...
A Daring Mission
From there, the action would have kicked off at the Kuat Shipyards where Rose Tico and BB-8 were attempting to infiltrate one of the First Order's ship factories in an effort to deliver another blow on behalf of the Resistance.
Finn and Poe also would have been present, and their plan involved destroying the power shaft which supplies raw ore to the factory from the orbital ring below the Moon they're on.
Unfortunately, things go wrong and the First Order is able to contain the blast. A character named Admiral Vaughn dismisses the Resistance's tactics as "pitiful," but the tide soon turns in their favour.
Rey's New Weapon
Disguised as a Tusken Raider, Rey reveals her new weapon, a double-bladed lightsaber that's a hybrid of her staff and Luke Skywalker's blade (the one destroyed in The Last Jedi).
A battle ensues and our heroes manage to escape with a Star Destroyer! It's then that the Knife 9, a ship carrying the Knights of Ren, arrives. Rather than being sidelined, we'd have seen what they're capable of when one of them kills the Admiral for his failure.
Return To Coruscant
The once vibrant city now looks very different as the planet has become a stronghold for the First Order. General Hux is now Chancellor Hux and the traitor who helped the Resistance steal that Star Destroyer is executed before him.
He then meets with other members of the First Order and a variety of alien warlords who are all too aware that there's a "last Jedi" making problems in the Galaxy. This council demands to know the location of Supreme Leader Kylo Ren, but all Hux can say is that he's off searching for something of great power that will help them.
Oh, and at some point, we'd have also learned that Captain Phasma survived!
A Haunted Kylo Ren On Mustafar
Kylo Ren, who now has stubble and looks a little worse for wear, is alone on Mustafar (except for a droid that's said to be similar to Darth Maul in appearance) and haunted by the Force Ghost of his uncle, Luke Skywalker.
They argue back and forth about Ren's path leading him to little more than an empty tomb, but the villain vows to become more powerful than any Jedi. It's then that he finds a Sith Holocron which reveals a message from Emperor Palpatine. It was meant for Darth Vader as a contingency in case Luke killed him.
We learn that Vader was to take Luke to see Tor Valum, a Sith Master and Darth Plagueis' teacher. However, after the Holocron scans Kylo and realises he's not Vader, it releases red lightning and explodes, burning his face.
Rey Still Wants To Save Kylo Ren
Back at the Resistance base, everyone is shocked to see a Star Destroyer land on the planet, and there's a funny moment with Rey using a Jedi mind trick on officers who were still on board.
Talking to Finn, she admits that she's not sure she has what it takes to be a Jedi, especially when so many people have such high expectations of her. Talk turns to Kylo Ren and she's unable to explain their connection after telling Finn about nightmares she's been having about him.
He believes that Rey should shut him out as he can't change, though the Jedi reminds him that Finn is proof it's never too late to become a different person.
A Plan Starts To Form
That Star Destroyer could help turn the tide for the Resistance as it still has most of its weapons...they just need an army to use it! Rey, meanwhile, has been studying the Jedi texts from Ahch-To and discovers that there's a communications system called a Force Beacon beneath the Jedi Temple in Coruscant that could be used to reach out to allies across the Galaxy.
The kicker is that the First Order will be powerless to stop it as it predates even Empire technology.
Rey Gets Angry
Luke also appears as a Force Ghost to Rey and just as he's pushing Kylo Ren to embrace Ben Solo, he's pushing Rey to get stronger. Kylo, meanwhile, has had smelted Mandalorian armour applied to his face to cover his scars and proceeds to belittle Hux before ordering him to deal with the Resistance while he takes care of Rey.
Rey asks Luke what it means for there to be balance in the force, as "The dark suffocates the light, light extinguishes the dark. Over and over and over again." She's clearly doubting herself and Luke can sense that she's angry; their exchange boils down to him trying to convince her to remain on the path she's on and not give up on the Force or becoming a Jedi.
The Story Takes Shape
One team (Rose, Finn, R2-D2, and C-3PO) head to Coruscant to light the beacon, while another (Rey, Poe, and Chewbacca) are travelling to a planet where Rey is looking for someone to help her figure out what she should do (that's as specific as this description gets, unfortunately).
Before Rey leaves, she tells Leia - who remains at the base overseeing the Resistance - that she believes there's still good in Kylo Ren, something even his mother doubts. All Leia wants Rey to know is that her story is her own and that she shouldn't let anyone, including Luke, tell her what to be.
Vader's Mask Is Destroyed
Kylo Ren fully seems to be embracing the Dark Side at this point, taking Darth Vader's mask and saying he finally understands him now: "You allowed love to cloud your judgement."
He proceeds to take his grandfather's helmet and throws it from a balcony, shattering it.
War Is Waged In The Galaxy
Things start to get a little vague at this point, but the First Order tracks down its stolen Star Destroyer and the Resistance is forced to go on the run. That first team manages to turn on the beacon in the Jedi Temple and we then see people around the Galaxy receiving the signal (including Bossk).
The second team, meanwhile, is being pursued by the Knights of Ren to a planet called Bonadan.
Kylo Ren Meets Tor Valum
Kylo Ren arrives on Remincore and comes face to face with Tor Valum. He's an alien of unknown origin who is 7000 years old and said to be very "Lovecraftian" in appearance. Kylo begins training with him and in a throwback to The Empire Strikes Back's cave scene, Ren comes face to face with Darth Vader and loses what is described as a brutal battle between them.
Poe, meanwhile, has taken Rey to a Seer who is able to pull information from her memories, including a star chart of some sort from her visions with Kylo Ren. The Knights then show up and a lightsaber battle ensues in which Rey is ultimately victorious (throughout the film, they'd have bene taken out by her).
Pieces Start Falling Into Place
Eventually, Rey and Kylo Ren arrive on Mortis, while Leia recruits Lando to organise the smugglers and take the fight to the First Order. Rose (who reportedly had a much larger role in this film) is captured and tortured by the villains but makes her escape and rejoins her friends.
Finn, alongside R2 and Threepio, manages to start a citizens uprising on the ground on Coruscant (and even recruits some of his fellow Stormtroopers). It's around this point that Hux takes his own life with one of the many lightsabers he's collected from fallen Jedi, while those Finn found hiding in the Jedi Temple make use of old tech to take the fight to the First Order and finally end their reign.
Leia also brings her forces to Coruscant for the final battle with the First Order and fights ensue both on the ground and in the sky. Chewbacca ends up flying an X-Wing, while back on Mortis, Rey and Kylo squaring off in a battle that's seen him become more powerful than any Sith before him (he can now absorb the life energy of others).
The Final Battle Begins
During the fight, Ren even reveals that he killed Rey's parents at the behest of Supreme Leader Snoke, before the Force Ghosts of Luke, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Yoda ultimately appear to try and bring him back from the edge.
That comes after he blinds Rey, and while she's ultimately slain, it's Leia who gets through to her son and convinces him to bring her back. He does so at the cost of his own life, and her fate is left unknown to her friends. At the same time, Rey realises that she must find balance in the Force between the light and dark as embracing both is the only way to move forward.
However, we later find Rey Solana (Ben reveals her name as he dies) on a planet called Modesta where she's fully healed and training a new generation of Jedi alongside Finn and Rose who are now a romantic. The Resistance, meanwhile, finally won, restoring hope to the Galaxy.