The Mistake Hiding In Star Wars’ Most Famous Scene
Star Wars is a franchise filled with many memorable scenes, but none more so than the famous reveal in The Empire Strikes Back that Darth Vader is actually Luke Skywalker’s father. Many over the years have called this a perfect movie scene, and when it comes to everything from the acting to the emotional impact, that is very true. However, this famous Star Wars scene has an editing mistake hidden inside it: look very closely after Vader says “father,” and you can see that some of the frames of this famous scene are just reversing the footage that came before.
I Am Your Father
This is a weird Star Wars editing mistake (or, more correctly, an edit to fix a mistake) that most fans have never noticed, and those who have noticed have come up with a variety of theories to explain what might have happened here. For example, Darth Vader body actor David Prowse was given different lines to say on set that day (he claimed Obi-Wan killed Luke’s dad), with the big “I am your father” reveal being added only during postproduction. This reveal was such a well-kept secret that Harrison Ford expressed playful annoyance at Mark Hamill for keeping the truth so well-hidden.
Once You See It, You Can’t Ever Unsee It
Given this particular bit of Star Wars trivia, it’s entirely possible that Prowse moved at the last moment in such a way that took away from the reveal’s emotional impact, accidentally creating a mistake that had to be fixed in editing. Alternatively, it could be the fault of James Earl Jones…perhaps his line reading was just a tad too long, resulting in the need for reverse footage.
No matter who is to “blame” (as it were), the fact that such a mistake is hidden in the most famous Star Wars scene is something that’s impossible to look away from once you notice it.
Full Of Reverse Footage
Incidentally, Star Wars is a franchise that is absolutely full of reverse footage moments, and not all of them are a result of editing mistakes. The most blatant example of this is the moment in The Empire Strikes Back when Darth Vader uses the Force to grab Han Solo’s blaster (to his credit, the smuggler wasted no time trying to put this Sith Lord in the ground). This cool visual effect was accomplished by David Prowse throwing Solo’s blaster forward, and reverse footage made it look like he was pulling the gun toward himself.
The Classic Reverse Shot
Of course, the most egregious use of reverse footage in Star Wars happens during A New Hope, and this edit corrected a pretty big mistake. Remember the famous scene when the Tusken Raider lifts his gaffi stick into the air and threateningly shakes it? Originally, the actor simply raised his arms in the air, and that footage was repeatedly played backward and forward to create the shaking effect.
The Sequel Trilogy Included Them Too
Ironically, Star Wars is so known for using reverse footage that conspiratorial fans began thinking it was used to correct an editing mistake in The Rise of Skywalker. Specifically, in the scene where Rey embraces the redeemed Ben Solo, many fans thought this was a reverse of a shot where she instead placed his body on the ground. The shot wasn’t reversed, but by the time the credits rolled on that stinker of film, we did wish there was a different reversal, one that turned back time and let us get over two hours of our life back.
