

This weekend marks the 30th anniversary of the movie that was, then wasn't called "Revenge of the Jedi."

Oh, that George Lucas.

The filmmaker who has seemingly never stopped making his own films first showcased his talent for fiddling on "Revenge," sorry, "Return of the Jedi."

When the movie hit theaters on May 25, 1983, the third and then-concluding chapter of the adventures of Luke, Leia, and Han had been known to audiences longer by its original title than its revised one thanks to ample exposure to "Revenge"-accented posters, teaser trailers, and merchandise.



It was only two months before the summertime release (timed to the fifth anniversary of "Star Wars") that "Revenge" became "Return"; it was said Lucas acquiesced to fans who found vengeance a motive unbecoming a Jedi. (Now Siths on the other hand...)

Here's a look at what else could have been in "Return of the Jedi":

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Han Solo Gets Killed (or, Possibly, We Don't Get the Joke)



While doing press amid the 1997 rerelease of "Jedi," the press-adverse Harrison Ford claimed he wanted his character, who was frozen at the end of "Empire Strikes Back," to die at the end of the second "Star Wars" sequel.

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"I thought it would give the movie weight and resonance. But George Lucas was not sympathetic," Ford said, and unfortunately the oft-quoted quote doesn't let on if the actor's tongue was planted in his cheek.

There is this clue, perhaps: The sound bite ends with a jocular — too jocular? — reference to the Ewoks. Quipped Ford of Lucas: "He didn't want me killed by those teddy-bear guys."

Then again, there's also this: Ford hasn't really stopped talking about how he wanted his alter-ego offed. In 2010, he told ABC News that, unfortunately, Lucas saw no future in "dead Han toys."

(By the way, apparently you should take zero stock in the story that Lucas did want to snuff out Han's pal Lando Calrissian, played by Billy Dee Williams — IMDb.com calls the notion a "Star Wars urban legend.")

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Luke, Leia...and Laura Palmer?



David Lynch ("Twin Peaks") offered that he passed on directing "Jedi" because, as it was reported at the time, "he didn't think he'd have any leeway."

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Lynch wound up putting his imprint on another epic fantasy/sci-fi flick, albeit one that failed to reach the lofty heights of "Jedi" — 1984's critically assailed "Dune." (Anyone else think that film's signature monster, the sandworm, would look right at home on Tatooine?

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"Return of the Psychologically Twisted Jedi?"



In 2007, David Cronenberg ("The Fly") told MTV News 9 that he, too, had gotten a nibble about directing. But in a (brief) phone call with one of Lucas' producers, he recalled, "I wasn't enthusiastic enough obviously. I didn't get a chance to think about whether it was a good idea or not. I blew it right away."

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