The success of Marvel’s “What If?” animated TV show has naturally led to intense speculation about what would happen if Star Wars made a similar “What If?” series. What If…? is a Marvel series that explores how a character’s fate or storyline could have been different if one aspect of the story changed. Like Marvel, Star Wars is a franchise built on powerful storytelling that features complex characters. The choices that characters make have massive ramifications for the entire franchise (or the galaxy), and small changes to these choices would fundamentally reshape the films.
Particularly in the Skywalker Saga, the members of the Skywalker family and those directly around them have major impacts on the Star Wars galaxy. Because simple changes in their stories could have meant the difference between life and death or good and evil, imagining how different scenarios could have played out and what the results of those changes would have been is especially thrilling. For each of the nine Skywalker Saga films, and for the impending New Jedi Order film, one alteration could have changed it all — and some of those changes almost came to pass in earlier iterations of the movies.
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10 What If Qui-Gon Didn’t Die During The Battle Of Naboo?
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace
In Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Obi-Wan was set to become a Jedi Knight, and Qui-Gon intended to accept Anakin as his Padawan – convinced the Chosen One required training. Although an excellent Jedi, Obi-Wan frustrated Anakin with his high expectations and adherence to the Jedi code. Qui-Gon was known for being a rule bender within the Jedi Order and may therefore have been more lenient with Anakin, giving him room to fall short. In this scenario, Anakin could have sought Qui-Gon’s guidance on his feelings for Padmé, either leaving the Order or ending the relationship. Qui-Gon would also have listened to criticism of the Jedi, allowing Anakin an outlet other than Palpatine, perhaps preventing Anakin’s turn to Vader.
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9 What If Padmé Hadn’t Changed Her Mind in Attack of the Clones?
Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones
Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones is largely driven by Anakin’s obsession with Padmé. In his first appearance in the film, Anakin explains his nervousness about seeing her again, and this only builds throughout the film, culminating in his proposition that they be together in secret. While she reciprocates Anakin’s feelings, Padmé rejects Anakin because the deception of that path would destroy them, but she walks it back when she believes they are about to die on Geonosis. This sets in motion the events of Revenge of the Sith, with Anakin becoming obsessed with keeping her alive, ultimately driving him to the dark.
Had Padmé stuck to her refusal to be together, Anakin may not have fallen to the dark side. He would have been hurt by this rejection, but he likely would have loved her from afar and not feared her loss in the same way. Of course, Palpatine would still have been manipulating his mind, and he would have suffered the loss of his mother, but Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith makes it clear that the biggest factor in Anakin’s turn to Darth Vader was the fear of losing Padmé and the belief that only the dark side of the Force could save her.
8 What If Anakin Had Died on Mustafar?
Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith
Given that Palpatine’s plan for the Empire relied heavily on Anakin turning to the dark side, so much so that Darth Maul referred to Anakin as “the key to everything” in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, his death could have changed the fate of the galaxy. In Revenge of the Sith, Obi-Wan could have easily killed Anakin after cutting off his limbs. While Palpatine may have taken control either way and surely would have replaced Vader, Anakin was handmade for the role, and his power would be difficult to match. This story may have ended with a weaker Empire, perhaps one that crumbled even before Luke came along.
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7 What if Luke Had Been Home When The Stormtroopers Attacked?
Star Wars
The deaths of Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen in the first Star Wars movie (later retitled A New Hope) were brutal, and based on the level of destruction, had Luke been home, he would likely have died. This would have led to a cascade of changes throughout the Star Wars universe; however, as Yoda indicated in The Empire Strikes Back, there was another source of hope for the Jedi to continue: Luke’s twin, Leia. Throughout the original and sequel trilogies, Leia proves her abilities not only with the Force but also with leadership, suggesting that she would have held her own had Luke died and left her to stop Vader and bring back the Jedi.
Given that, it’s possible that Obi-Wan and Master Yoda could have transitioned their focus to training Leia. Even so, Luke’s absence would have shifted so much of Star Wars. Without Luke, Leia might have focused on rebuilding the Jedi and may not have settled down; in fact, it’s unlikely she would have met Han at all. In that case, both Ben Solo, her son, and Kylo Ren, the villain, would never have existed. In this story, the new Jedi Temple could have thrived, and Palpatine might have found a different avenue to re-emerge, perhaps redoubling his efforts to recruit Rey.
6 What If Master Yoda Had Refused to Train Luke?
The Empire Strikes Back
Although Revenge of the Sith set Yoda and Obi-Wan up to train Luke, Yoda would have had reason to decline. Luke shared his father’s shortcomings; in fact, a major concern about Anakin in The Phantom Menace was his age, which had allowed attachments to form. Luke was a decade older than Anakin had been then. There was also Vader’s legacy. Star Wars is clear that individuals can become more than who/where they come from, but Yoda may have been hesitant to train him. Had Yoda refused, Luke would have been left with the minimal training he received from Obi-Wan, limiting the Empire’s biggest threat.
5 What If Luke Had Turned to the Dark Side?
Return of the Jedi
Imagining Anakin not turning to the dark side in Revenge of the Sith is a fun, popular thought experiment, but imagining Luke falling in Return of the Jedi is even more exciting because it undercuts his character so significantly. Like Anakin, Luke was being tempted by the opportunity for more power and manipulated by Palpatine to lean into anger and hate. While Luke didn’t have quite the same motivations Anakin did (trying to save Padmé’s life), he was drawn to connecting with his father. Getting to fight alongside him must have been a compelling pull. Had Luke fallen, it would have been the worst-case scenario for the Jedi.
With the context that the Sith Rule of Two is more a guideline than a rule, it’s possible that Palpatine, Vader, and Luke could have unified as three Sith Lords, which would have made them nearly unbeatable. It’s more likely, given Palpatine’s track record, that he would have killed Vader and taken Luke on as an apprentice, but even in that case, Luke would have prevented anyone else, including Leia, from receiving training from Master Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi. With his turn, Luke could have ended the future of the Jedi, keeping the prophecy of the Chosen One at bay as his father had.
4 What If Rey Hadn’t Escaped Kylo Ren?
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
In Star Wars: The Force Awakens, there are hints that Rey is Force-sensitive from the start, such as when she saves Finn from the Rathtars based on ‘luck,’ but she doesn’t fully reveal or understand her powers until she escapes Kylo Ren. Using the Jedi mind trick made famous by Obi-Wan in A New Hope, Rey convinces a stormtrooper to let her out of her bindings, securing her escape. Simultaneously, Kylo explains to Snoke that Rey is strong with the Force. Had Rey not escaped, Kylo would have made good on his plan to bring Rey to Snoke, and it’s clear that Snoke intended to weaponize Rey rather than kill her.
Rey was restrained and defenseless, and had Snoke wanted her dead, he would have told Kylo to go kill her; instead, he wanted Rey brought to him. Throughout the sequel films, Rey struggles against a pull to the dark side. Particularly because of her lack of knowledge about the Force and her need for family and connection, Snoke and Kylo may have succeeded in turning her to the dark side, creating the Sith Rey teased in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Perhaps this storyline would have pulled Finn in as the key Jedi, culminating in a fight between Rey and Finn.
3 What If Rey Had Been a Kenobi?
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
The Palpatine bloodline plot twist was impossible to anticipate, and Star Wars: The Last Jedi suggested that Rey’s origin was of little consequence. In fact, Kylo Ren directly tells her that she’s nothing and comes from nothing. Despite that, a prominent and favored fan theory was that Rey was really a Kenobi. In terms of timeline, she could not have been Obi-Wan’s daughter, but she could have been his granddaughter. Although Obi-Wan’s commitment to the Jedi makes his breaking the Jedi’s ‘no attachments’ policy unlikely, his love interest introduced in The Clone Wars series, Satine Kryze, opened the door for that story.
Satine, Bo-Katan’s sister, was the Duchess of Mandalore and confirmed in The Clone Wars series that she loved Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan shockingly says in turn that had she asked him to leave the Order, he would have. If the two had a secret love child, that child could have gone on to hide on Jakku and eventually have a daughter—in fact, with both Satine and Obi-Wan being so hunted and persecuted at various points, this would have made perfect sense. This lineage would have meant that Obi-Wan’s granddaughter and Anakin’s grandson would have faced off, a beautiful homage to the prequels.
2 What If Kylo Ren Was the Big Bad?
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
Adam Driver recently explained that Kylo Ren was never meant to be redeemed. Instead, he was Vader’s opposite, moving from vulnerable to the most evil, ultimately fully embracing the dark side. The Force Awakens set the stage for that journey; in it, Kylo is emotional, immature, and even fragile. By the end of The Rise of Skywalker, that original plan was completely undone. Kylo reverts to Ben Solo, returning to the light. In a story following the first plan, Kylo could be the villain the sequels needed. The Rise of Skywalker could end with a battle between Rey and Kylo, perhaps still resulting in Kylo’s death but without redemption.
1 What If Ben Solo Returned?
New Jedi Order
Adam Driver confirmed he isn’t returning to Star Wars. This isn’t necessarily surprising because Ben Solo died in The Rise of Skywalker, but he could have aided in Rey’s new Jedi Order. Although Rey trained under Luke and Leia, she did not experience a Jedi Temple. Ben, despite a rocky history, did. With this past, Ben could guide Rey on the strengths and pitfalls of the Jedi, the latter being more important given the legacy of the prequel trilogy’s Order. Rey and Ben could build the Temple together, establishing a new Council side-by-side. With Ben Solo’s absence, a Star Wars “What If…?” would offer an exciting opportunity for this story.
