Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy’s recent interview with Vanity Fair addressed what she called the need for Star Wars to “move beyond” the Skywalker Saga and focus on other aspects of the universe. That presumably means branching into different genres similar to what the Marvel Cinematic Universe has done: delivering horror, crime stories, comedies and the like. The Mandalorian proved that such stories could work, and the creative potential for such exercises in Star Wars is limitless.

It may be a surprise to learn then that the saga came far closer to delving into serious horror far earlier in its development. In fact, Lucas approached legendary director David Cronenberg about helming Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi. Cronenberg declined, apparently without regrets. But it shows that Lucas was willing to widen the scope of what Star Wars could be very early in its development.

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Jabba the Hutt in his palace

The search for a Return of the Jedi director ranged wide. Lucas financed the movie himself, and a feud with the Director’s Guild left him with limited choices. According to the documentary Empire of Dreams, his first choice was Steven Spielberg: his longtime friend who had successfully collaborated with him on Raiders of the Lost Ark. Spielberg was a DGA member, however, and therefore not an option. David Lynch got approached as well, but as that director revealed in a 2010 interview, he had little interest in the project despite great respect for Lucas.

A director of Lynch’s pedigree speaks volumes about where Lucas wished to go with the project. The surreal disquiet of Eraserhead and The Elephant Man could have been incredible when applied to the likes of Jabba’s palace or the final confrontation with the Emperor. Star Wars itself came from an exceeding strange place, and indeed it was such a sudden -- and massive -- success that the often-bizarre nature of the saga got lost. A director more attuned to the horrific might have pushed the franchise farther in that direction and created something much different than what it became.

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George Lucas talks to C-3PO actor Anthony Daniels on Star Wars' Tatooine set

That’s where Cronenberg came in. Like Lynch, he had made a name for himself with works of the macabre, and 1981’s Scanners demonstrated that his vision could work with comparatively mainstream audiences. In a recent interview with Variety, Cronenberg revealed that he turned the offer down for the same reasons Lynch did: he had the ability to make movies that adhered to his own vision by then and wasn’t interested in someone else’s. He proved it by promptly making Videodrome, followed by a more commercial adaptation of Stephen King’s The Dead Zone.

From Cronenberg’s comments, the possibility of him directing looked like a zero from the start. Lucas ultimately went with British director Richard Marquand for the job, and Return of the Jedi became the classic conclusion to the original Star Wars trilogy. Empire of Dreams notes Lucas’s frequency on the set, suggesting that both Cronenberg’s and Lynch’s concerns were justified. Marquand, whose auteurial stamp was less distinctive, was more apt to follow Lucas’s wishes. The other two would have had their own ideas, which may have created too much creative friction.

Even so, it’s tempting to speculate what might have been if Cronenberg had ended up directing the film. Even more than Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi showed just how weird Lucas’s galaxy could be for the first time. And pushing that further sooner might have resulted in a more disturbing vision overall. But it’s not too late. Cronenberg has struck a high profile lately with his recurring role in Star Trek: Discovery and his upcoming film Crimes of the Future. With Star Wars eyeing other genres more forcefully, the right project for him might crop up.