Darth Vader Actor David Prowse Spoiled the Big STAR WARS Plot Twist Two Years Before EMPIRE STRIKES BACK Was Released
Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back featured one of the biggest and most surprising plot twists in movie history with the reveal that Darth Vader was Luke Skywalker’s father. My dad told me that when he and my mom were waiting in line for the movie when it first came out, some guys drove by in a car a yelled out “Darth Vader is Luke’s father!” Spoiling the movie for everyone in line! So crazy, but that’s how they did it back in the day when the internet and social media didn’t exist.
It turns out, though, that Darth Vader actor David Prowse spoiled the huge plot twist two years before The Empire Strikes Back even came out! George Lucas did everything he could to keep the whole “I am your father” surprise a secret before and during the film’s launch.
Two years before the movie’s premiere during a 1978 interview with the San Francisco Examiner, Prowse revealed the potential plot twist in the sequel saying:
“Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker are hooked up in a do-or-die light saber duel when Luke learns that Darth is, in fact, his long-lost father.”
I included a portion of the article below for you to see. Now, it seems like Prowse was just speculating at the time, but the speculation was right on the money! Plus, I imagine that some people may have thought he was just joking around. He argued that his disclosure was purely a coincidence, but ya never know.
If the internet existed back then, that quote would have spread like wildfire, but it was pretty much contained to this one newspaper and it didn’t really go anywhere. I’m sure some fans who read the paper freaked out about it and talked about it with their friends. But, it didn’t go beyond that and ruin anything. It was pretty contained.
There was also a second leak from Prowse for Return of the Jedi! A year before that movie came out, a UK tabloid leaked that Darth Vader was going to die in the film. Prowse was held responsible for the leak, which only hurt his relationship with George Lucas.
Prowse did admit to sharing the news with a journalist who was initially talking to him about his weightlifting career. That conversation turned to Star Wars, and it was at this point Prowse accidentally revealed Vader’s fate. When it came time to unmask Vader, Lucas replaced Prowse with actor Sebastian Shaw.
Prowse later shared that everyone on the set of the film isolated him following the leak. Lucas refused to talk to him during the last six weeks of production.
There’s no doubt that Lucas was stressing the hell out over these leaks and hoping they didn’t gain any traction, which they didn’t.
Via: Facebook