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One of the easiest ways to get a guaranteed reaction out of any Star Wars fan is to tell them with complete conviction that you believe Greedo shot first, and then just wait for their response.
Ever since George Lucas went back and tinkered with the theatrical versions of A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi in the 1990s, the diehards have been clamoring for the original unedited cuts of the trilogy to be released. Unfortunately, the bearded plaid enthusiast has absolutely no intention of handing them over, and out of all the changes he made to the movies, nothing annoys the fanbase more than watching Greedo fire the first shot in a choppy and very poorly edited addition to the cantina scene.
Everyone knows Han shot first, even Mark Hamill, but new book titled The Star Wars Archives: 1999-2005 once again finds Lucas defending his decision, with the filmmaker saying:
“I never designed Han to be a ruthless killer. All the good guys shoot in self-defense. When I edited the scene in 1977 you couldn’t tell who does what.”
The can of worms was opened once again last year when the Original Trilogy arrived on Disney Plus, and at this point it feels as though the argument will rage on for eternity. In the larger Star Wars mythos, though, it doesn’t matter who shoots first, because the brief interaction between Han and Greedo doesn’t really have much bearing on the overall narrative.
That being said, Luke Skywalker is the clean cut white knight of the franchise, while Han is more of a charismatic rogue who obvious has a shifty past, so him taking out Greedo before his opposite number tried to pull the same stunt on him is perfectly in keeping with his personality, although George Lucas can say or do pretty much whatever he wants seeing as he’s the guy who created Star Wars in the first place.
Today, the Star Wars universe lost one of its original stars, as it was announced that David Prowse had passed away at the age of 85. The actor/bodybuilder is most known as the man who brought Darth Vader to life. While James Earl Jones memorably provided the villain’s voice, the 6ft 6inch Prowse was the one who created Vader’s physicality and presence.
SW fans have been mourning the star’s loss all day today, then. And so have those who worked with him on the original trilogy, including creator George Lucas. Lucas released a statement in response to the sad news:
“David brought a physicality to Darth Vader that was essential for the character,” the Star Wars creator said. “He made Vader leap off the page and on to the big screen, with an imposing stature and movement performance to match the intensity and undercurrent of Vader’s presence. David was up for anything and contributed to the success of what would become a memorable, tragic figure. May he rest in peace.”
The British-born Prowse performed Vader in A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, with other performers taking on the part for the character’s additional appearances in the likes of Revenge of the Sith and Rogue One. Away from Star Wars, Prowse was a regular face in British TV and film in the 1970s – he even showed up in another iconic sc-fi franchise, Doctor Who – and played Frankenstein’s Monster in a bunch of Hammer horror movies.
He was also beloved of children of that generation as the Green Cross Code Man, a superhero who taught kids how to cross the road safely in a series of public service announcements. Prowse has a couple of other major claims to Hollywood fame, too – he featured in Stanley Kubrick classic A Clockwork Orange and trained up Christopher Reeve as Superman. In later years, Prowse was a regular face on the convention circuit.
Luke Skywalker himself Mark Hamill, Prowse’s on-screen son/enemy, likewise paid his respects to the late actor. On Twitter, Hamill praised him as “a kind man” who “loved his fans as much as they loved him.”
Prowse’s family confirmed that he had passed away after a short illness this Sunday, November 29th. Originating the role of Vader means that he’ll not only go down as a Star Wars legend but an icon of cinema, too. Rest in peace.
David “Dave” Prowse, the actor under Darth Vader’s helmet and armor in the original Star Wars trilogy, has died after a short illness at the age of 85. His agent announced his death early on Sunday morning, saying:
“It’s with great regret and heart-wrenching sadness for us and millions of fans around the world, to announce that our client Dave Prowse MBE has passed away at the age of 85.”
The former bodybuilder made his leap into a galaxy far, far away after George Lucas spotted him in a bit part in Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange. According to Prowse, he was offered a choice between playing Chewbacca or Vader and chose the latter on the basis that “everyone remembers the villain.”
Of course, fans will know that James Earl Jones provides the booming voice of Vader. George Lucas apparently planned this all along, too, as Prowse’s British west country tones don’t exactly scream bone-chilling villainy. Still, he was speaking Vader’s lines on set during the shoot and (hilarious) footage of him voicing the role can be seen on YouTube.
But it wasn’t all good times on the Star Wars set, as Prowse had a difficult relationship with Lucas from day one. In interviews, he claimed that he wasn’t told that they weren’t going to use his voice and also felt betrayed when the filmmaker didn’t tell him that Vader was Luke Skywalker’s father (he only realized this at The Empire Strikes Back premiere). Furthermore, in Return of the Jedi, he assumed that his face would be visible when Vader’s helmet was removed in the finale, only for Lucas to use Sebastian Shaw instead.
“The thing that hurt was it was all done without telling me,” said Prowse. “It was all done in a very underhand way. I didn’t like it one little bit.”
Beyond Star Wars, Prowse was also friends with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Incredible Hulk actor Lou Ferrigno from their bodybuilding days, was Christopher Reeves’ personal trainer for Superman and is known to a generation in the United Kingdom for his role as road safety PSA superhero The Green Cross Man, for which he was awarded an honor by the Queen in 2000. That last one was the job he was most proud of, too, with the actor saying:
“Many people will know me for being the ultimate screen villain, Star Wars’ Darth Vader. But being a “goodie goodie” and heading up the Green Cross Code campaign, helping to save thousands of lives has always been the ultimate honour.”
RIP Dave Prowse 1935-2020.