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Rogue One: Move over Finn and Poe, is this Star Wars' first official gay couple?

LGBT Star Wars fans have long been looking for some onscreen representation - could Chirrut and Baze finally be it?

Clarisse Loughrey

Monday 19 December 2016 11:54 GMT

*WARNING: SPOILERS FOR ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY AHEAD*

For all there is to celebrate in Rogue One's diversity, it has to be said that LGBT fans are still found lacking in representation.

Which is one of the reasons a fairly dedicated fandom sprung up around the idea The Force Awakens' Finn and Poe could be the Star Wars franchise's first same-sex couple, though the theory was unfortunately shot down by John Boyega himself.

Yet, the same has happened again, with fans now more hopeful that the Star Wars franchise will finally offer an LGBT couple to its canon in the form of Rogue One's Chirrut Imwe and Baze Malbus.

Vulture writer Kyle Buchanan writes of the duo's "old-married-couple" vibe, thanks to Baze's bemused looks shot across to Chirrut every time he launches into another monologue about the powers of the Force.

Also highlighting the line "I don't need luck, I have you"; Buchanan particularly picks up on Chirrut's death scene, having sacrificed himself by walking out into open fire in order to pull the lever allowing an urgent message to be transmitted to the Rebel Alliance.

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

Show all 13

1/13[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

'I rebel'

Straight off the bat, that instantly infamous line from Felicity Jones' Jyn Erso - "This is a rebellion, isn't it? I rebel" - is missing from the final cut. Probably a good thing, considering nobody needs Jyn's entire character motivation spelled out in quite such obvious terms.

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

Moody Orson Krennic

This brilliantly moody shot from the film's teaser never makes it into the final cut, but there's a good chance it was never intended to, having all the hallmarks of footage deliberately shot for the trailer.

Walt Disney Studios

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

Moody Jyn Erso

The same goes for this look at Jyn Erso in her Imperial disguise, which definitely has the look of a promotional shot to it.

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

'What will you become?'

The look at Jyn's Imperial outfit coincides with the final line of a cut monologue from Saw Gerrera: "What will you become?" The confusing part here is that Saw is seen with the close-cropped hair he sports only in the prologue scenes, when Jyn is only a child. When she visits him in Jedha, his hair is much fuller and he's sporting a beard. So, was this speech somehow originally delivered to Galen Erso in a cut prologue segment? In the context of Galen's work with the Empire and his later attempts to evade them, Saw's words would make a lot more sense.

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

And Moody Darth Vader

Potentially another promo shot, considering this was used as the very first reveal of Darth Vader in the trailers.

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

Krennic and Vader

However, this shot also shows a cut scene between Krennic and Vader, in which the former talks about the "power we are dealing with here".

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

'The captain says you are a friend. I will not kill you'

K-2SO has many similar lines directed to Jyn throughout the film, but they're a lot less sinister than this one.

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

Captured rebel pilots

This shot from Jedha is missing. It doesn't exactly add anything to the story, but it's an added touch of grit which sets the tone nicely in the trailers.

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

'Good.' 'Good.'

A cut moment between Jyn and Cassian, though it's a little hard to tell where this comes from - there's no moment where Jyn sits as co-pilot on the U-wing, since it's usually K-2SO in the seat.

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

Jyn faces off against a TIE fighter

What's interesting is that this shot of Jyn limping across the Scarif communications tower is, of course, in the final film. It's just that the TIE fighter is entirely absent. Was this a cut moment? Was Krennic piloting that thing? Or was it even just cut into the trailer to keep audiences off the scent?

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

Krennic on the Scarif beaches

And what about this great shot of Krennic marching amongst the dead? The set-up and lighting seem to imply he survives the initial battle without getting shot by Cassian, and is on the ground when the Death Star destroys Scarif - if that's indeed the source of the glow in the background.

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

Jyn and Cassian in the Scarif battle

In fact, the trailer footage seems to hint at a drastically different ending, which may point to what exactly got changed during the re-shoots. We see multiple shots of Jyn and Cassian running along the Scarif beach with the Death Star plans. Considering the battle is still in full swing, it suggests the archives and the communications tower may have been separate locations in the original version.

[SPOILERS] 13 scenes from Rogue One's trailers cut from the film

Jyn, Cassian, and K-2SO running through Scarif base

And here, again, we see Cassian, Jyn, and K-2SO running with the data plans through the Scarif base. That means the droid wasn't originally meant to die (or whatever happens to droids) defending the archive room.

Chirrut dies in Baze's lap, momentarily raising his hand to caress Baze's cheek; who in turn runs into battle repeating Chirrut's mantra of, "I am one with the Force, and the Force is with me", in a suicidal gesture of vengeance and grief.

"I don't mind people reading into [Chirrut and Baze's relationship]. I think that's all good. Who knows? You'd have to speak to them," director Gareth Edwards told Yahoo! Movies when questioned about the relationship, which is at least less of a definite "no" than Finn and Poe received.

Buchanan may have picked up on a (potentially intended) subtext between the two Rogue One characters, but there's something perpetually frustrating about LGBT fans being left with nothing but subtext, having to read into characters' sexuality instead of it being explicitly expressed onscreen.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story IMAX Featurette

Whether its Finding Dory having to sneak in its same-sex couple with a quick cameo, or Ghostbusters' Paul Feig buckling under the studio pressure preventing him from officially confirming Kate McKinnon's character in the film is gay, filmmakers are still having to speak in code when it comes to LGBT representation; a trope that hasn't changed since Holllywood's early days.

J.J. Abrams has stated in the past that LGBT characters will appear in future Star Wars films, so hopefully we're only simply talking a question of when, and not if.

And, as GLAAD's criticism of Star Wars' lack of LGBT representation stated: "As sci-fi projects have the special opportunity to create unique worlds whose advanced societies can serve as a commentary on our own. The most obvious place where Disney could include LGBT characters is in the upcoming eighth Star Wars film."

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