Star Wars: How Padme Almost Killed Anakin Skywalker In Revenge Of The Sith

With how enormous and respected the "Star Wars" universe is, it comes as no surprise that the saga has been rewritten, re-conceptualized, and reworked until it became the story we know and love today. For example, "The Rise of Skywalker" could have been a vastly different movie, as seen through the rumored original script, "Duel of The Fates." Though we may never see these ideas come to life on screen, it's exciting to imagine what could have been and how it could have changed the course of the series. One idea that was ultimately scrapped involves Padme (Natalie Portman) attempting to kill her husband, Anakin (Hayden Christensen), in "Revenge of the Sith."

The concept art, created by Iain McCaig, depicts Padme facing Anakin with a knife in her hand, ready for a final confrontation. McCaig presented the piece in 2016 at the Academy of Art University and explained the idea behind the planned scene, which starts when Padme sees Anakin on Mustafar. "She gets off the ship with the knife, she runs up and throws her arms around him, and he lets her," he said. "She's got the knife to the back of [Anakin's] neck and she's going to kill him. [Again], he lets her. But she can't do it. She loves him too much to stop him, even when he becomes the monster."

This scrapped scene is another way that Padme's journey could have changed in the series, with others wondering what would have happened had she not died. The artwork is incredibly beautiful and heartbreaking, highlighting the downfall of Padme and Anakin's once-loving relationship. The actions that follow, with Padme unable to stab her husband, show her conflicting feelings. While fans would love to see Padme put the Jedi Order before Anakin, ultimately choosing not to kill him makes her a more multi-dimensional character, allowing the audience to feel more sympathy and anger for her situation. 

Furthermore, the fact that Anakin allows her to do all this is equally telling. Rather than use the Force against her, he lets her into his arms, knowing she holds a weapon. He knows she won't go through with it, but his reasoning is not romantic. At this point, he believes Padme has conspired against him, and he most likely thinks that she is too weak to go through with it.

This also ties into his claims that Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) turned Padme against him. If he views her change of heart as a sign of love, he has no reason to think she and Obi-Wan are betraying him. As it is, Anakin sees her as a scared and weak woman who cannot bear the wrath of the man she has deceived.