Abrams Explains Why Some Trailer Scenes Were Cut Out of THE FORCE AWAKENS
It’s nothing new to see a completed movie that didn’t include scenes we saw in the trailer for it. This happens all the time, but it’s been a major topic of conversation among Star Wars fans. A lot of them are wondering why certain scenes from the trailers didn’t make it into the final cut of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. I even know someone that says he was cheated because of this and strongly feels that it was false advertising.
Sometimes scenes that were shot for the film that work for the trailer, just don’t make it into the final cut of the movie, and there’s nothing wrong with that. During an interview with EW, Abrams was asked about one of scene specifically. That scene included Maz handing Luke’s lightsaber over to General Leia. If you remember, in the film, Maz gives the lightsaber to Finn after Rey refuses to take it.
Abrams explains that there were a bunch of scenes that he didn’t end up using because it didn’t work for the story they wanted to tell.
“That was a scene actually filmed, but we took out. At one point, Maz used to continue along with the characters back to the Resistance base, but we realized that she really had nothing to do there of value, except to have her sitting around. Lupita did film scenes on set for that sequence, but it felt like going right just to go left, and it was unnecessary. So we ended up leaving those things out. Sometimes you discover that things you would have cut off a limb to shoot on the day are absolutely inconsequential, and in fact less impactful than if you were to remove it.
“As much as you try to kick the tires and write and shoot only what is necessary — no one wants to waste anyone’s time — when you’re in the editing room you realize, for instance, that introducing the character there actually diminishes their power. Or, giving that information actually distracts you from what you should be concentrating on. Or, having that moment happen concurrent with that moment actually gets in the way of both — things like that.”
Filming a movie is a work of art, and in the process of creating it, the filmmakers see what they need and don’t need to tell their story.
We still don’t exactly know how Maz came across the lightsaber, but you can read my theory regarding it here. I’m sure we’ll learn how she came across the lightsaber in Episode VIII. They better not let that question linger beyond that!