It's been nearly 50 years since A New Hope debuted in 1977. Over that time, Star Wars has blossomed into a multimedia, genre-bending, morals-teaching form of entertainment. George Lucas probably didn't expect the film to take off as it did, but A New Hope sparked a franchise that many people hold near and dear. There were a lot of reasons that the Star Wars movies resonated with their audiences, but the well-written, identifiable characters were one of the biggest factors.
Granted, dialogue may not be Star Wars' strongest quality, but there were always ways that those characters communicated their feelings to the audience. A young Anakin feared for his mother's life, and Luke Skywalker wanted to save his father. The list of universal issues goes on and on. However, it's worth noting that some of Star Wars' most memorable comedic beats and heart-to-hearts had something in common: they happened in elevators.
Some Elevator Scenes Showed Star Wars' Comedic Side
Star Wars isn't known for its comedy, but there are definitely some comedic beats. Two of the prequels' elevator scenes showed that. The first one was in the opening minutes of Attack of the Clones. Anakin and Obi-Wan were reporting as Senator Amidala's security detail, and Anakin was beside himself with nerves. He hadn't seen Padme for ten years, and Obi-Wan clearly amused by Anakin's apprehension. A second Obi-Wan and Anakin elevator scene happened in Revenge of the Sith. In that scene, the master and apprentice cut through battled droids and disagreed about how to best get to their desired location. It showcased how well they worked as a team, which was in contrast to the movie's tragic conclusion.
Another comedic elevator scene was supposed to be in The Last Jedi. A deleted scene showed a disguised Finn, Rose and DJ (Benicio del Toro's character) encountering a squad of First Order stormtroopers in an elevator. It was a callback to Luke and Han posing as Stormtroopers in A New Hope's elevator scene. But in a humorous twist, Finn was recognized before being congratulated for his "promotion" to officer. It was a great scene that would have given the trio more screen time and made their heist more believable.
Other Elevator Scenes Revealed True Feelings
While some elevator scenes were all about comedy, some weren't. The first happened in Return of the Jedi when Vader was taking Luke to see Palpatine. Nothing needed to be said because Vader had adamantly denied his still being Anakin, but the tension was real as Luke remained steadfast in his hope. There was a similar scene when Kylo Ren was taking Rey to Snoke in The Last Jedi. The scene showed that they were both looking into the future and saw themselves working together. Except there was some confusion; Rey thought Kylo would turn to the light, while Kylo thought Rey would turn to darkness. Their heart-to-heart showed that the two of them would be working together in short order.
Star Wars' anthology films also had their elevator scenes. Solo's scene came near the end of the film when Han, Qi'ra and Chewbacca were preparing to take down Drayden Vos. The problem was they were on totally different pages. Han was confident they were going to "win," but Qi'ra just wanted to survive. It was a perfect foreshadowing that Han's ideal ending wasn't going to happen. But while they may not have been on the same page, Jyn Erso and Cassian Andor perfectly understood each other in Rogue One. After sending the Death Star plans to the Rebellion, the two shared an elevator ride down to the beach. They didn't say anything on the ride because nothing needed to be said. It was a sad ending, but the moment they shared encompassed their sacrifice. They had accomplished their mission and were ready to die together in peace.