Chewbacca shows off the early Star Wars script where Obi-Wan survived

Obi-Wan Kenobi's death has become one of the most iconic moments in all of Star Wars history, but did you know there was a version of A New Hope where the wise old hermit, played by Alec Guinness, survived his fight with Darth Vader? Peter Mayhew, the man behind (inside?) Chewbacca posted pictures on Twitter of an old script where, though badly injured, General Kenobi makes it onto the Millennium Falcon and escapes the Death Star.

A Hollywood urban legend suggests that it was Guinness' idea to kill Obi-Wan off, but there are conflicting accounts of how true that is. Guinness has taken credit for the Jedi master's death, but a script revision with Obi-Wan's death was written by Lucas before Guinness was hired. The truth likely lies somewhere in the middle, with the idea of killing Obi-Wan coming from Lucas, and Guinness convincing the writer and director that it was the way to go.

While these pages give us a taste of an alternate Star Wars timeline, it's what happens after that I find most intriguing. How do you think the Rebel Alliance would've fared if Obi-Wan were still around after the end of A New Hope?

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Sam Prell

Sam is a former News Editor here at GamesRadar. His expert words have appeared on many of the web's well-known gaming sites, including Joystiq, Penny Arcade, Destructoid, and G4 Media, among others. Sam has a serious soft spot for MOBAs, MMOs, and emo music. Forever a farm boy, forever a '90s kid.