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It's hard to believe, but this December marks the one year anniversary of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. J.J. Abrams' blockbuster ended the nine-film Skywalker Aga, which was no easy task. Since then plenty of unused ideas and concept art have arrived on the internet, and the latest features Kylo Ren and Rey mid-lightsaber battle on a beloved Star Wars planet.
Kylo Ren and Rey had a number of lightsaber duels throughout the sequel trilogy, with Adam Driver and Daisy Ridley engaging in dizzying fight choreography. But one of the many abandoned ideas for The Rise of Skywalker would have seen the two characters having an epic battle on none other than Tatooine. Check out the concept art below.
FOMO alert. While Luke Skywalker's iconic home planet would eventually factor into the story of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, it definitely would have been awesome to see the two protagonists of the trilogy meet sabers in that location. Let's break down what we're being shown here.
The above piece of concept art comes to us from the Instagram of concept and comic book artist Adam Brockbank. He's helped to develop a visual language for a variety of beloved film properties including Harry Potter, Captain America, and Maleficent. And when helping J.J. Abrams and company to develop The Rise of Skywalker, Brockbank created this epic rendering of a Tatooine lightsaber battle.
The entire Skywalker Saga is currently streaming on Disney+. You can use this link to sign up for the streaming service.
In the image Rey is seen mid-air with her repaired version of Luke's lightsaber. She's on the offensive against Kylo Ren, and it looks like the lightsaber battle is actually happening in Luke's childhood home from A New Hope. This is is where Mark Hamill's character spent his youth, while unaware that he was actually related to Darth Vader.
Rey did eventually travel to Tatooine, at the very final moments of The Rise of Skywalker. She honored Luke and Leia by burying heir lightsabers in the sand, while the Force Ghosts of the beloved icons looked on. As a reminder, you can check out that sequence below.
In the end the battle on Tatooine didn't happen during Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker's runtime. Instead, Kylo and Rey had their biggest lightsaber duel on the water planet of Kef Bir. It was a thrilling sequence and the elements definitely raised the stakes, but it would have been awesome to see them clash in the desert.
The Star Wars franchise is in an unprecedented place, as the main story has officially come to an end. Any future movie installments will have the freedom of telling an independent story, and there are a number of projects in development. This includes Patty Jenkins' Rogue Squadron movie, as well as another one helmed by Taika Waititi.
Most recently the Star Wars galaxy was expanded via Season 2 of The Mandalorian. Be sure to check out our 2021 release list to plan your trips to the movies in the New Year.
