Killed by his own son, Kylo Ren in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Han Solo faced the ultimate betrayal -- and fans experienced the ultimate heartbreak. Although the loss of such an icon was devastating, it was going to happen sooner or later. During the creation of the original trilogy, George Lucas toyed with the idea of killing off the beloved scoundrel in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi -- a death that would have completely changed the saga.
Ideas about the death of Han were exchanged among Lucas' team. They had a lot of factors to consider, the first being that they weren't sure whether star Harrison Ford would even be in the film. It was uncertain whether Ford would sign on to the third movie, because Raiders of the Lost Arc had just been released, making him an even bigger star. Because of the uncertainty, co-writer Lawrence Kasdan pitched the idea of including Han, but killing him off in the beginning of the film. Lucas didn't like the idea, and ultimately Ford signed on without confirmation on the character's fate.
Despite Lucas' opposition to Han's death, the character was slated to die in the original screenplay. However, Lucas saved the character, arguing that keeping Han alive would aid in toy sales.
"We had an outline and George changed everything in it. Instead of bittersweet and poignant he wanted a euphoric ending with everybody happy," co-producer Gary Kurtz recalled in an interview. "The original idea was that they would recover Han Solo in the early part of the story and that he would then die in the middle part of the film in a raid on an Imperial base. George then decided he didn’t want any of the principals killed. By that time there were really big toy sales and that was a reason."
If Han had been killed in the original trilogy, the entirety of Star Wars lore to follow would have changed dramatically. First, the many non-canon Legends books would not have been possible, as Han played a huge role in them. Most notably, the recent sequel trilogy would have been entirely different. There would be no Kylo Ren, and therefore, no heir to the Skywalker legacy. The studio would have had to create a different villain, which raises the question of whether the alternate villain would have been connected to a previous character in some way. Who knows how Luke Skywalker would have turned out, as he wouldn't have gone through the trauma of Kylo dissenting as his pupil to turn to the Dark Side. He could've possibly become an even stronger Jedi Master, creating an actual Jedi academy. Then, there's the matter of Rey. Her whole story and character arc was set up in The Force Awakens through her relationship with Han. If Han had been killed off in the original trilogy, her character would likely not be the same.
An early death for Han Solo would have meant drastic changes to what eventually was produced in later Star Wars books, films, television shows and comics. Had Lucas decided to kill Han in Return of the Jedi, a plethora of outcomes could have ensued. Whether or not those outcomes would have been better or worse is up for debate, but one thing's for certain -- the Star Wars universe would not be the same without the stuck-up, half-witted, scruffy-looking nerf herder.