Duel of the Fates

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Name: Star Wars Episode IX: Duel of the Fates
Abbreviation(s): DotF
Creator: Colin Trevorrow
Date(s): 2016
Medium: leaked script, concept art
Country of Origin:
External Links: Script PDF
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Duel of the Fates was a version of Star Wars Episode IX by Colin Trevorrow that was scrapped by Lucasfilm in favor of The Rise of Skywalker. It is frequently confused with the musical theme with the same name from The Phantom Menace.

A script breakdown[1] and concept art from the planned film were leaked to Reddit in 2019.[2][3]. A PDF of the full version of a script allegedly co-written by Trevorrow in 2016 appeared online in early 2020.[4]

Fans disappointed by The Rise of Skywalker were intrigued by the plot and story elements of the cancelled film, which they saw an improvement over TROS. Fanworks based on some or all of Duel of the Fates became common in post-TROS fix-it fics and AU versions of Episode IX.

It is especially popular with Damerey shippers who appreciated the romantic tension between Rey and Poe Dameron in the script. Hux fans also enjoyed the character's expanded role and iconic death scene.

One line in the script--"Hux realizes the tragic truth. He lost the star wars."--has become a meme.

Face-palming Domhnall Gleeson being stabbed with a purple lightsaber reminiscent of his character's death in Duel of the Fates, with the caption "We lost the star wars" in reference to the most famous line in the script.
Face-palming Domhnall Gleeson being stabbed with a purple lightsaber reminiscent of his character's death in Duel of the Fates, with the caption "We lost the star wars" in reference to the most famous line in the script.

Common Tropes in Fanworks

  • The First Order has all but taken over the galaxy and is headquartered on Coruscant, forcing the populace into poverty.
  • A traitor is executed by Force guillotine.
  • Rey wears a black jacket lined with white, similar to Luke Skywalker's outfit in Return of the Jedi and wields a blue double-bladed lightsaber constructed from the shattered remains of Anakin Skywalker's lightsaber.
  • Finn, Rose Tico, BB-8, and Poe Dameron infiltrate the Kuat Drive shipyards. When the mission goes wrong, they are rescued by Rey.
  • Rose's role is greatly expanded and she is revealed to be a munitions expert.
  • Supreme Leader Kylo Ren searches Darth Vader's castle on Mustafar, haunted by the Force ghost of Luke Skywalker, who urges him to return to the light.
  • Kylo discovers a holocron left behind by the late Emperor Palpatine with a message for Vader, which scars his face when it explodes.
  • Rey, Finn, and Poe steal a Star Destroyer.
  • Rey trains with Luke's ghost, and expresses a desire to become a new kind of Jedi beyond the dichotomy of light and dark.
  • Kylo throws Vader's helmet away, cursing his grandfather for letting love cloud his judgement.
  • Rey is not Palpatine's granddaughter and is unrelated to any previously established character(s). Her family name is revealed to be Solana. Kylo Ren murdered her parents on Snoke's orders.
  • Poe and Rey frequently express concern for each other. A romance develops, and they kiss.
  • The Knights of Ren play a much bigger part and are identified by name before Rey defeats them.
  • Leia reassures Rey that the Force chose her for a reason, though she is skeptical that Kylo can be redeemed.
  • Finn leads a stormtrooper rebellion on Corsucant.
  • The Resistance calls to the galaxy to Coruscant using a beacon in the old Jedi Temple.
  • The bounty hunter Bossk makes a cameo.
  • Kylo battles a vision of Darth Vader in a sequence evocative of the cave sequence in The Empire Strikes Back.
  • Chewbacca flies an X-Wing during the Battle of Coruscant.
  • Lando Calrissian rallies the galaxy's smugglers to aid the Resistance.
  • Hux is shown with a collection of antique lightsabers. He uses Mace Windu's purple lightsaber to kill himself when it is clear the Resistance has triumphed.
  • In the final battle, Rey and Kylo duel on Mortis. Rey is blinded by Kylo but uses the Force to continue the battle.
  • The ghosts of Luke, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda appear to Rey and Kylo, but Kylo dies without returning to the light.
  • With her teachers' support, Rey embarks on her new blended path, leading a Jedi school with Finn.

Reactions and Comments

All the nice ideas from The Last Jedi might have actually been paid off. These movies might have actually been worth something. I… why the fuck did we get what we got out of The Rise of Skywalker when this thematically unified stuff was just out there, percolating? [5]

I think that Trevorrow putting Leia right back where she started in her story pretty much confirms Leia was always going to be done dirty in IX for nostalgia [6]

Let me tell you some things: The first time that I heard about a possible script of Star Wars was leaked thought that was maybe a fanfiction or something like that.

Yesterday, I had the possibility to read it and I’m speechless.

...Before this script was out, i was thinking to write about Damerey. But after reading this; this is so perfect that i couldn’t write something because it is the best. thing. ever. It’s the f*******ng perfection.

The Rise Of Skywalker was good, but The Duel of The Fates… Amazing. [7]

There was a lot of stuff I…wasn’t wild about in this script, some of which I’m really glad never made it into TRoS. But there were a few decent concepts scattered about, and I’d love to see what creators make of those. Maybe even have a crack at some of them myself 👀[8]

Selected Fanworks

Fanfics

Fanart of Poe reaching out to Rey before she uses the Force to send him back to the Resistance, by brightboisterousbananas.
Fanart of Poe reaching out to Rey before she uses the Force to send him back to the Resistance, by brightboisterousbananas.
  • Duel of the Fates by BatuuPrincess. A fanfiction adaptation of Colin Trevorrow's Episode IX script, Duel of the Fates.
  • Episode IX: Duel of the Fates by EduardoAranha Do you wonder what Episode IX could have been with Colin Trevorrow's script? Well, here it is a re-imagination!
  • Star Wars, Episode IX: Duel of the Fates REWRITTEN by shield616. Luke Skywalker's sacrifice inspired the galaxy to rally to war against the First Order. Battle lines have been drawn, with half the galaxy occupied by First Order oppression and the other half standing together as the Galactic Alliance to oppose them. Now, five years in and with no end to the bloody warfare in sight, our heroes and villains are now desperately searching for new weapons and strategies to end the stalemate. Who will bring peace to the galaxy on their own terms? What is the meaning of balance in the Force?
  • Star Wars: Episode IX - A Wind to Shake the Stars by Grand Moff Titus. Troubled by visions of his defeat, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren has gone in search of an ancient dark side power. In his absence, the Knights of Ren hunt Rey, the last Jedi, as she and the rest of the Resistance attempt to rally the galaxy to their cause. Meanwhile, a dark presence prepares to return to the galaxy...

Fanvids

Links and Resources

References

  1. ^ Robert Meyer Burnett reviews an early draft of Star Wars' 9th episode entitled DUEL OF THE FATES on r/starwarsleaks
  2. ^ 20 pieces of concept art from Star Wars: Duel of the Fates
  3. ^ 28 new pieces of concept art from Star Wars: Duel of the Fates
  4. ^ The Full Original Star Wars 9 Script Has Supposedly Leaked. And It Gives Fans the Ending They Deserved. by Dom Nero, Feb 12, 2020.
  5. ^ https://igetalongwithoutyouverywell.tumblr.com/post/190658921150/in-leaked-concept-art-from-colin-trevorrows Tumblr post by igetalongwithoutyouverywell], February 5, 2020.
  6. ^ Tweet by Mindful_Jedi, January 24, 2020.
  7. ^ Tumblr post by captaingravity55, Feb 9th, 2020
  8. ^ Tumblr post by venatohru, 02.09.2020.
  9. ^ Tumblr post by red-emperor, September 1, 2020.
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