19 years ago, Steven Spielberg helped create the best lightsaber fight in Star Wars history

Until 2005, Star Wars fans could only imagine the fateful lightsaber duel that ended with Anakin Skywalker’s physical transformation into Darth Vader. But when it finally happened on screen in Episode III: Revenge of the Sithwhat we got was both massive and strangely confusing. Anakin and Obi-Wan floating on platforms in lava is perhaps the best microcosm for what’s great and terrible about the prequels; The idea feels like something awesome you’d make your action figures do, but the execution is questionable.

Who is responsible for the weird way Anakin and Obi-Wan’s lightsaber duel was filmed? According to a new interview with stunt coordinator Nick Gillard, the infamous moment when Obi-Wan has the “high maybe” on Anakin was potentially suggested by Steven Spielberg, not George Lucas.

The rumor that Spielberg secretly orchestrated the confrontation between Anakin and Obi-Wan has persisted for some time. But do these claims have any legitimacy? A deep dive into Star Wars history reveals just how complicated the achievement is Revenge of the Sith it really was.

Spielberg’s Revenge of the Sith contributions, explained

From 2005 onwards Revenge of the Sith even in theaters, Star Wars insiders have made it clear that George Lucas’ old friend Steven Spielberg helped with several aspects of the film. According to longtime Star Wars historian JW Rinzler:

“(George Lucas) gave Spielberg a few scenes to play with in the animation phase: a bit of Mustafar’s duel and Yoda’s duel with the Emperor, along with a few others. How much of Spielberg’s input made it into the final film, only Lucas or Spielberg could say, especially since George revised and reinvented every scene in the film so extensively in the editorial.”

To be clear, this means that Spielberg was essentially working with storyboards. Animations are animated storyboards that help filmmakers visualize their final shots. So by giving Spielberg animations to “play” with, Spielberg could suggest visual ideas of how plot points might play out. In the behind-the-scenes footage released in conjunction with Revenge of the Sith DVD, it was explained that Spielberg came up with several scenes that were never used, including various alternate interpretations and “his version” of Order 66.

But does all of this add up to a smoking blaster that proves Spielberg invented the moment when Obi-Wan has the high ground?

The mystery of the high ground remains unsolved

Although it is generally agreed that Tom Stoppard, of all people, served as an uncredited script doctor on Revenge of the Sithwhat remains unclear is whether the concept of Obi-Wan having high ground comes from the script or a result of the production process.

In a new interview with Nick Gillard on the Chris and Company podcast, Gillard made it seem possible that the top script was Spielberg’s idea. This detail has led to several articles claiming that Spielberg is responsible for this iconic moment, but what Gillard actually said is much less definitive. Gillard’s exact words are: “I think Spielberg… I think that (was) Spielberg’s idea, that scene. I might be saying too much now, but I’m pretty sure it is.”

So the new evidence is grim at best, but what else do we know? Earlier this year, in an interview with Empire, Gillard said the duel initially happened differently.

“They both land on the side of the lava flow and immediately start fighting. Anakin disarms Obi and grabs him by the throat. He’s about to decapitate himself, but Obi sucks the lightsaber into his hand in a defensive move to try to block it, and in doing so, cuts off Anakin’s arms and legs directly.

As reported Den of GeekGillard said Lucas “wanted something else” and “we’d be fools to second-guess him”. But why did Lucas want anything else? Did Spielberg influence him? Maybe not, because that’s where things get weird. In 2019, Gillard suggested IGN that the high ground thing was his idea, because in real life, “(Hayden Christensen) hates going on a slope, so that was in my mind about the higher ground. If they can get (Anakin) on the slope, Obi might have a chance.”

So which one is it? Was this George Lucas’ idea? Spielberg’s idea? Gillard’s? Gillard supported all three, and while it’s certainly not his fault that he doesn’t have a photographic memory of a project he worked on nearly two decades ago, there’s clearly no definitive answer.

Here’s what we know for sure. Spielberg worked on some animations to help visualize the Mustafar duel. He’s also close friends with George Lucas (they happily collaborated on four Indiana Jones films, one of which came out just three years after Sith). So the idea that Spielberg invented the “tall” scene is not outrageous, especially since the guy who coordinated the stunts, Gillard, seems to have the idea in mind.

But none of this is confirmation and Spielberg’s specific ideas that made it Revenge of the Sith are not fully known. They probably never will be, and maybe that’s for the best. After all, only a Sith deals with absolutes.