In an unused story for The Rise of Skywalker, we could have witnessed a vastly different Coruscant. When Kylo Ren goes to this planet, he finds a decimated place where giant wolves reign supreme.
Could this story have been possible? Read on to find out.
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What Could Have Happened to Coruscant?
In an early draft of The Rise of Skywalker from 2017, Kylo Ren encounters a transformed Coruscant, to say the least.
The plot is that Ren travels to Coruscant to visit the Jedi Temple, apparently looking for something there. However, what he finds is a “dead” planet “full of dust” that is now “overrun by giant wolves.”
The Art of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is the 2020 book that provides these premises. It’s a compilation of the art, storyboards, and designs of the film both used and unused.
The book serves as “the official behind-the-scenes companion” to the final movie of the Skywalker saga.
The book provides intriguing insights into how the last movie could have developed, including the capital world of Coruscant.
We may wonder whether this could have happened to the capital planet.
Could This Have Happened to Coruscant?
Fans on this discussion board are largely incredulous about this possible plot twist. One post asks, “Why the h___ would Coruscant be abandoned?” Another one specifies how the “whole place” being abandoned is “just silly.”
And, a third claims, “No way that happens to Coruscant. Too many people,” it would still be the center of the galaxy. These are great points, given Coruscant’s history.
The Jewel of the Core Worlds was a “city-covered planet” with a “cosmopolitan culture” and “towering skyscrapers” that was the center of the Republic and then the capital of the Empire.
Coruscant underwent one thousand years of urban development and a population buildup of 1 trillion people at the end of the Clone Wars.
Coruscant lost some of its prominent status under the New Republic and confronted warfare during the First Order-Resistance War in 34 to 35 ABY.
Yet, how could this populated urban world become a wasteland where giant wolves prevailed only 30 years after the Battle of Endor?
This storyline is possible if we think about possible tie-ins and compare it with what else happened in the film.
How Could Coruscant Be Overrun by Giant Wolves?
As the video in the first section indicates, incorporating this scene into the movie could have linked the sequels to the prequels. Audiences could find out what happened to the Jedi Temple since Order 66.
Or, maybe we could have seen a Sith Temple beneath the Jedi one that had undermined the Jedi before the rise of the Empire.
Hence, Coruscant’s demise with wolves in control could have been worked in as a way to connect the Star Wars universe.
Coruscant becoming this abandoned wasteland is also not as preposterous when we compare it with other aspects of the film.
A “Star Destroyer factory” is one that poses believability issues, for example, especially as the ships in space become equipped with “miniaturized Death Star weapon technology.”
We could take this idea as outlandish too, or not that well developed.
The resurrection of Palpatine is a more discussed item that was used in the film. Many fans objected to his cloned return as poor storytelling and not that probable, given his toss down the reactor chamber in Return of the Jedi.
In comparison, wolves overrunning Coruscant starts to sound more palatable.
When discussing this unused sequence, this article expressed how “cool” it would have been “to see Kylo Ren fighting alien wolves.”
That action would certainly have fit in with the rest of the movie. By a coolness factor, then, we could see how this storyline could have been used. We might even prefer it to the main story of Kylo’s “abrupt redemption arc.”
An Unused Sequence
Ultimately, the creators must have agreed with many fan reactions that this storyline was too far-fetched to include. Yet, we can see how it could have worked.
Given the directions the film did take, giant wolves on Coruscant are not as unlikely as it seems.
Todd Wahlstrom is a creative and analytical freelance writer and life-long Star Wars fan. He has covered such topics as Darth Vader, the Jedi, Boba Fett, and AT-AT Walkers. Todd has published a non-fiction book, holds a Ph.D. in history, and enjoys hiking, running, and reading about science.