The Original Empire Strikes Back Trailer Teased A Creepy Star Wars Romance
In the deleted “Empire Strikes Back” scene, Luke hopes to tell Leia how he feels about her, only to have his emotional moment thwarted by R2-D2 and C-3PO (Anthony Daniels). Unlike the kissing scene that made it into the final cut, the deleted moment was played off as genuine. It would have also set up a “will they, won’t they” among the trio, probably making it one of the strangest things about Princess Leia and Han Solo’s relationship. Luckily, plans for a love triangle were scrapped.
The deleted moment and the kiss in the final cut are sort of harmless considering Luke and Leia weren’t always envisioned as siblings by George Lucas. While appearing at the Sci-Fi Expo in Plano, Texas, in 1999, former franchise producer Gary Kurtz revealed (via The Force.net) that the original plan was to have Luke’s sister be a new character (distinct from Leia) who was across the galaxy. By the time work started on “Return of the Jedi,” Lucas likely realized that it would be convenient to have Luke and Leia be siblings, as he could wrap up the trilogy and also create higher emotional stakes for the finale.
While their kisses are definitely creepy, Luke and Leia never lock lips again after they find out they are siblings. So there is that. After the events of the original trilogy, Leia makes things official with Han Solo. Still, Luke and Leia’s smooch is definitely the worst kiss in “Star Wars” history, and for good reason.