John Williams says he originally thought Luke and Leia would become lovers in Star Wars. Williams is of course one of the most famous composers in Hollywood, with him composing on some of the most famous franchises, like Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, and Star Wars. Williams has composed the original, prequel, and sequel trilogies, while Michael Giacchino and John Powell composed Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Solo: A Star Wars Story respectively. Williams also composed the music for Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge.
While Williams has been a constant throughout the Star Wars saga, so have Luke and Leia. The two characters were present in all three of the original trilogy films, with Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher also returning for the sequel trilogy. In Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi it was revealed that Luke and Leia were siblings, even though it seemed like Leia was choosing between Han and Luke throughout the films. Fans may have thought that Leia was going to end up with Luke, and now Williams has revealed he thought the same thing.
In an interview with CBS, Williams revealed he initially thought Luke and Leia would become romantically involved when he was working on Star Wars. Williams admitted that he didn't know what George Lucas had planned for their relationship, especially since Lucas didn't even know there was going to be a second film. However, after reading the interactions between the characters, Williams explained he did think that the two would eventually get together. Williams' quote from his interview with CBS can be read below:
"I saw them as two young people in the first film that I would never see again. And they seemed to be compatible. They had fun together. They did the action scenes together. And I figured, "Well, sooner or later, they will be lovers and they'll have children and you know, so I wrote a love theme for Princess Leia, not knowing for, like, two or three years that they were brother and sister. I'm not even sure when George (LAUGHS) told us. That was the second film, or the third ["Return of the Jedi"]. So I had to go back and write different themes for (LAUGHS) the various relationships that came into focus over time."
While Luke died at the end of Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Fisher passed away in 2016, both Luke and Leia are expected to return for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Hamill has hinted that Luke will return as a Force Ghost, while Leia will be brought back using deleted footage from previous Star Wars films. Williams is also returning to score The Rise of Skywalker, although he may retire from composing Star Wars movies after that.
The Luke and Leia kiss from Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back may be a cringe-worthy moment in the film now knowing that they are related, but it makes sense why Williams assumed they would become romantically involved. Leigh Brackett's first draft of The Empire Strikes Back not only revealed that Darth Vader wasn't originally Luke's father, but also that Leia wasn't originally his sister. Lucas was planning on introducing a new character for Luke's sister, which is why Luke and Leia appear to have romantic chemistry in the first two films. Given the changes that the original trilogy went through, it makes sense why Williams thought Luke and Leia would become lovers when he began working on Star Wars.
Source: CBS
