By Chris Snellgrove | Published
The Empire Strikes Back is definitely the best Star Wars movie, but it’s still one that left fans with questions. For example, it’s never clear exactly why Darth Vader is obsessed enough to risk thousands of Imperial lives to hunt the Millennium Falcon. However, one fan theory provides an elegant answer: he sensed a powerful Force user on board, and not knowing that it was in fact Luke Skywalker’s twin sister Leia, he assumed that the man who destroyed the Death Star was on board the ship.
Darth Vader wants the Millennium Falcon
In case you need a quick recap, Darth Vader personally helped invade Hoth, and after the Millennium Falcon escaped, he led the chase from his own Star Destroyer. The Rebels’ escape is successful thanks to Han Solo’s cunning and piloting prowess, and we see that the chase costs the Imperials dearly in terms of lives lost. Two Star Destroyers collide and another appears to be destroyed by an asteroid, and fans have spent decades wondering why Vader was willing to lose nearly 47,000 lives (the overall complement of one Star Destroyer) to hunt two humans, two droids and an alien. .
There are obviously several practical reasons why Darth Vader might be obsessed with capturing the Millennium Falcon, including the fact that it would be the only way to interrogate the rebels after the botched invasion of Hoth. Additionally, he was under additional pressure from the Emperor, who intervened via hologram to warn him of their “new enemy, Luke Skywalker.” According to this fan theory, Vader’s obsessive pursuit of the Falcon boils down to the fact that he was completely convinced that Luke Skywalker was on board and that he was willing to sacrifice countless Imperial lives to capture Earth’s greatest enemy. ‘Empire.
Darth Vader detected Leia on the Millennium Falcon
This is a very good theory because the climax of Return of the Jedi confirmed that Vader had no idea of Leia’s existence. In fact, Luke Skywalker doesn’t give in to his anger until his dark side dad threatens to track down Leia and convert her to his cause. Therefore, Darth Vader The Empire Strikes Back reportedly sensed the powerful Force user aboard the Millennium Falcon and simply assumed it was Luke. From a distance, his presence would probably have looked a lot like Luke’s during the attack on the Death Star (“The Force is strong with this one,” he said at the time).
Some Star Wars fans might think that Darth Vader’s Millennium Falcon obsession didn’t need a compelling reason, and it’s certainly funny to think that the Dark Lord of the Sith simply doesn’t care how many deaths linked to his obsession (nearly 47,000 people died, and that only comes from the Star Destroyer we know!). However, we like the idea of Vader still having a secret goal. In the novelization of A new hopeObi-Wan Kenobi speculated that his former student was “marking time toward an incomprehensible abomination.” Take it from his former Jedi master, this bionic villain never does anything without a reason.
If nothing else, this fan theory will change the way we view events in The Empire Strikes Back. The next time Darth Vader is chasing the Millennium Falcon, remember that he probably thinks he’s stalking Luke Skywalker. Little did he know that the young man was relaxing on Dagobah, taking the intensive week-long course that would help him become the greatest Jedi Master in the galaxy.
