It’s become commonplace for the most well-known Jedi of the Star Wars films to complete their training in a hurry. For Luke and Rey, a quick sojourn on some remote planet with a wise old master was all the preparation they got before their respective showdowns with the Sith. Samuel L. Jackson, however, needed five weeks to train for Mace Windu’s battle with Emperor Palpatine in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith.
The actor was recently a guest on GQ’s YouTube channel, where he spoke to his fanbase via social media. In response to a question from one Quora user about cinematic swordplay, Jackson recalls the demanding work that went into his two-minute lightsaber duel:
Lightsaber battles? It takes a long time to learn those, or it did when I was doing them. The last one I did with the Emperor was 99 moves through three rooms, backwards for me. So, two weeks in sneakers and shorts, two weeks in boots, another week in Jedi robe/boots/lightsaber before we actually shot it. So, it was pretty intense.
That’s quite a lot of planning to put into a battle that you know’s only going to end with a face full of the Emperor’s finger-lightning. Still, it’s an impressively choreographed sequence, and re-watching this Revenge of the Sith highlight may make you wonder whether Jackson might wield the purple saber again some day. It’s not out of the question, especially seeing how Lucasfilm has recently shut down reports that the franchise’s standalone movies are being put on hold.
In any case, 2019 looks to be a big year for the actor reprising famous roles, playing the murderous title character of Unbreakable follow-up Glass, a younger Nick Fury in Captain Marvel, and even Detective John Shaft II in Son of Shaft. With all these sequels in the works and Incredibles 2 currently in cinemas, surely Jackson wouldn’t say no to another trip to the Star Wars galaxy, right?