Nick Gillard on Hayden Christensen in Revenge of the Sith: “He gave it everything he had”

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Nick Gillard to discusses the final episode of the prequel trilogy and how its stars Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen were to work with, as well as looking at some overlooked fighting gems.

The intricacies of lightsaber choreography rehearsals leave no room for improvisation. It’s almost like a beautiful yet dangerous dance—where even the slightest loss of focus can lead to broken fingers.

“It has to be rehearsed. I’m sure some people think, ‘They’re not hitting with anything,’ but I can assure you if you get hit with one of those it will break your finger,” Gillard said. “[Ewan McGregor] broke my finger on Phantom … I think I might have broken his finger on Attack (laughs and smiles). Ewan hits so hard. He has to have a stronger lightsaber than everybody else.”

Revenge of the Sith has some of the most complex and advanced lightsaber fights of all Star Wars—some of them happening so fast that only the hardcore fans have meticulosly analyzed them frame by frame.

“There’s one move in that Dooku fight, which is our most complicated … no one ever mentions it! It’s called V3UBWT, which stands for vertical third up back with twist. Dooku does it when he has Anakin on one side and Obi on the other. It’s a beautiful move,” Gillard shared.

STAR WARS The Black Series Han Solo (Carbonite) 6-Inch-Scale The Empire Strikes Back 40TH Anniversary Collectible Figure with Stand (Amazon Exclusive)
  • HAN SOLO (CARBONITE): Before attempting to trap Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader tested the carbon-freezing process on Han Solo. The smuggler survived, and was later freed by Princess Leia in Jabba the Hutt’s palace
  • 40TH ANNIVERSARY FIGURE: Celebrate 40 years of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back with this Han Solo (Carbonite) The Black Series action figure featuring 1980s-inspired design
  • VINTAGE-INSPIRED PACKAGING: Star Wars The Black Series Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back 40TH Anniversary 6-inch-scale classic Star Wars figures feature packaging with original Kenner branding (Each sold separately. Subject to availability. )
  • PREMIUM DETAILING: Star Wars fans and collectors can display this Han Solo (Carbonite) figure, featuring premium deco, in their action figure and vehicle collection
  • LOOK FOR OTHER FIGURES FROM A GALAXY FAR, FAR AWAY: Look for movie- and entertainment-inspired Star Wars The Black Series figures to build a Star Wars galaxy (Each sold separately. Subject to availability)
Mark Newbold
Mark Newbold
Exploring the galaxy since 1978, Mark wrote his first fan fiction in 1981 and been a presence online since his first webpage Fanta War in 1996. He's contributed to Star Wars Insider (since '06) and Starburst Magazine (since '16) as well as ILM.com, SkywalkerSound.com, StarWars.com, Star Wars Encyclopedia, Build The Millennium Falcon, Geeky Monkey, TV Film Memorabilia, Model and Collectors Mart, Star Trek magazine and StarTrek.com. He is a four-time Star Wars Celebration Stage host, the only podcaster to have appeared on every Celebration podcast stage since the stage began in 2015, the Daily Content Manager of Fantha Tracks and the co-host of Making Tracks, Canon Fodder and Start Your Engines on Fantha Tracks Radio.
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Nick Gillard to discusses the final episode of the prequel trilogy and how its stars Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen were to work with, as well as looking at some overlooked fighting gems.

The intricacies of lightsaber choreography rehearsals leave no room for improvisation. It’s almost like a beautiful yet dangerous dance—where even the slightest loss of focus can lead to broken fingers.

“It has to be rehearsed. I’m sure some people think, ‘They’re not hitting with anything,’ but I can assure you if you get hit with one of those it will break your finger,” Gillard said. “[Ewan McGregor] broke my finger on Phantom … I think I might have broken his finger on Attack (laughs and smiles). Ewan hits so hard. He has to have a stronger lightsaber than everybody else.”

Revenge of the Sith has some of the most complex and advanced lightsaber fights of all Star Wars—some of them happening so fast that only the hardcore fans have meticulosly analyzed them frame by frame.

“There’s one move in that Dooku fight, which is our most complicated … no one ever mentions it! It’s called V3UBWT, which stands for vertical third up back with twist. Dooku does it when he has Anakin on one side and Obi on the other. It’s a beautiful move,” Gillard shared.

STAR WARS The Black Series Han Solo (Carbonite) 6-Inch-Scale The Empire Strikes Back 40TH Anniversary Collectible Figure with Stand (Amazon Exclusive)
  • HAN SOLO (CARBONITE): Before attempting to trap Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader tested the carbon-freezing process on Han Solo. The smuggler survived, and was later freed by Princess Leia in Jabba the Hutt’s palace
  • 40TH ANNIVERSARY FIGURE: Celebrate 40 years of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back with this Han Solo (Carbonite) The Black Series action figure featuring 1980s-inspired design
  • VINTAGE-INSPIRED PACKAGING: Star Wars The Black Series Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back 40TH Anniversary 6-inch-scale classic Star Wars figures feature packaging with original Kenner branding (Each sold separately. Subject to availability. )
  • PREMIUM DETAILING: Star Wars fans and collectors can display this Han Solo (Carbonite) figure, featuring premium deco, in their action figure and vehicle collection
  • LOOK FOR OTHER FIGURES FROM A GALAXY FAR, FAR AWAY: Look for movie- and entertainment-inspired Star Wars The Black Series figures to build a Star Wars galaxy (Each sold separately. Subject to availability)
Mark Newbold
Mark Newbold
Exploring the galaxy since 1978, Mark wrote his first fan fiction in 1981 and been a presence online since his first webpage Fanta War in 1996. He's contributed to Star Wars Insider (since '06) and Starburst Magazine (since '16) as well as ILM.com, SkywalkerSound.com, StarWars.com, Star Wars Encyclopedia, Build The Millennium Falcon, Geeky Monkey, TV Film Memorabilia, Model and Collectors Mart, Star Trek magazine and StarTrek.com. He is a four-time Star Wars Celebration Stage host, the only podcaster to have appeared on every Celebration podcast stage since the stage began in 2015, the Daily Content Manager of Fantha Tracks and the co-host of Making Tracks, Canon Fodder and Start Your Engines on Fantha Tracks Radio.
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