***WARNING: THE FOLLOWING MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS ***
Talk to anyone who has seen Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and you'd be hard-pressed to find someone who didn't like Oscar Isaac's character, Poe Dameron, ace pilot and one of General Leia's most trusted resistance members.
Back in April, actor Oscar Isaac briefly teased his character as "the best freaking pilot in the galaxy." Of course, Isaac's description of his character wasn't fully realized until I saw it on screen. As one dimensional as his character arc seems thus far, it's hard not to immediately fall in love with the good-natured Poe, who's involved in several of the film's best moments.
But what if I told you an original script idea called for Poe's death?
Speaking to GQ, The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams revealed that the original plan was to kill off Poe Dameron after the film's action-packed opening. As explained, Abrams invited Isaac to Paris to pitch him the mysterious role — an "amazing" pilot who "opens the whole movie."
Isaac recalls a positive response that quickly faded when Abrams revealed the character dies shortly thereafter. "I'd done that before," the actor noted. "Set up the plot for the main guy and then die spectacularly."
Abrams acknowledged the disappointment in Isaac when he revealed the character's fate, but insisted that he "wanted to impress upon him how much [he] wanted this to work," telling the actor his character could "live on in all corners of the Star Wars universe" in extended fiction through books, videos games, and more. We talked about the story and who this character could be,” Abrams said. “I loved the collaboration. People like Oscar are the people you listen to.”
It wasn't until Isaac returned home to New York when he wrote later to Abrams that he wanted the part. "I figured it would be a cameo: I'll come in, do my thing, and maybe it's actually better not to have to sign myself up for three movies," he said.
However, to Isaac's delight, Abrams had changed his mind, figuring out a scenario in which the character can survive. "Never mind. I've figured it out," Abrams wrote back. "You're in the whole movie now."
Isaac may not have major screen time compared to other newcomers like Daisy Ridley (Rey), John Boyega (Finn), or even Adam Driver (Kylo Ren), but it's hard not to love him during the few moments he does shine on screen. Having seen The Force Awakens twice now, I don't want to imagine a film in which Dameron is not in it throughout. In fact, I'd love to see his character expanded upon in the trilogy, and perhaps even in his own spinoff.
