New details about the making of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith suggest the movie's most meaningful scene was not even scripted. 2025 marked the 20th anniversary of George Lucas' final Star Wars film. Because of this, various names attached to the project have been allowed to look back at the star-faring epic. One of these personalities is the author Matthew Stover, the man responsible for the official novelization of Revenge of the Sith.
Stover released a new edition of the official Episode III novel in honor of the movie's 20th birthday, revealing new details about the making of the film and his book based on it. One of these nuggets came about midway through the book, detailing that what has been widely accepted as Revenge of the Sith's most meaningful moments was not in the initial script.
Talking about the sequence in which Hayden Christensen's Anakin Skywalker is seen brooding over the planet-sized city of Coruscant, conemplating his future within the Jedi, Stover divulged that George Lucas did not initially have that moment in the shooting script.
"The 'Anakin brooding at the Temple' scene wasn’t shot until after I delivered my draft," Stover posited (via The Holofiles). Instead, Lucas' initial script for the film has Anakin accompanying his Jedi cohorts to arrest the villainous Senator Palpatine:
"The 'Anakin brooding at the Temple' scene wasn’t shot until after I delivered my draft. Which (per the shooting script) had him accompanying."
This is easily the most emotional/meaningful moment in Revenge of the Sith and perhaps the Prequel Trilogy as a whole. It marks a turning point for Anakin, as this brooding moment is when he officially flips the switch, formally swaying to the Dark Side and going against the Jedi.
If Lucas had never gotten the idea for a change from Stover's novel, then Anakin would have tagged along with Samuel L. Jackson's Mace Windu and the other Jedi, depriving fans of this shadowy look within and making his Dark Side turn feel less impactful.
Will Anakin Skywalker Ever Return to Star Wars?
While Revenge of the Sith's 'looking out the window' moment marked the beginning of Anakin Skywalker's downfall, fans have embarked on a whole journey with the character since then.
Of course, the character had his moment of redemption in the Original Trilogy, as he fought alongside his son, Luke, to take down the Emperor, but he has also made several appearances since the 2005 blockbuster. Anakin has been seen going full Sith lord on a few occasions as well since then. He popped up in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Obi-Wan Kenobi, showing off just how much of a handle he had over his Dark Side powers.
The character may not be done with Star Wars yet. Even 20 years after Revenge of the Sith's release, he is still a significant part of the franchise.
Anakin is set to appear again in Ahsoka's upcoming second season, due out next year, and has talked about wanting to reprise the role in a live-action Clone Wars project with Obi-Wan actor Ewan McGregor.
