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.
