The Skywalker saga ended with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker in 2019. Though it could have ended quite differently, had Lucasfilm stuck with original director Colin Trevorrow's script, which was titled Duel of the Fates. We are never going to see that version in live-action, but a dedicated fan has turned the leaked screenplay into a comic, which is available to read for free online.

It all started with a fan named Andrew Winegarner, who has been working on adapting the leaked Duel of the Fates script in comic book form for over a year. He recently shared what he's been up to on Twitter. It has since made the rounds and has become rather popular. Winegarner had this to say in his original post.

"Hey, Star Wars fans. I've been working the past year on a comic book adaptation of Colin Trevorrow's Star Wars Episode IX script 'Duel of the Fates' and I'd like you to check it out! (It will be 7 issues total when completed.) Hope you enjoy it!"

This version of Duel of the Fates looks impressive. It has the look and feel of something that could actually exist. Winegarner even included the crawl text on the first page to help set the whole thing up. On his website, Winegarner explained his reasoning for taking on the project.

"Like many fans, I was disappointed with The Rise of Skywalker, a retread of Return of the Jedi that didn't seem to follow the trajectory of the story set up in The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. I was thrilled that Colin Trevorrow & Derek Connolly's Duel of the Fates leaked, both the script and amazing pre-production artwork, which I incorporate into my adaptation. Having read DOTF I can state that I enjoy it much more than TROS. My hope is that seeing the script visually in my free webcomic adaptation will help people know what could/should have been. My biggest issue with TROS is that all of Rey's agency was completely taken away, both as a character... and as a woman... DOTF is such an interesting piece of Star Wars lore. It is not canon and yet it not fan-fiction either, for it was the Episode IX set to be filmed for almost a year."

Colin Trevorrow, of Jurassic World fame, had been hired to finish the Disney sequel trilogy, which was started by J.J. Abrams with The Force Awakens. Rian Johnson's The Last Jedi proved to be divisive, which left the studio in an interesting position heading into Episode IX. In the end, Trevorrow and Lucasfilm had too many creative differences to get through and he departed the project. Abrams returned to finish what he started, significantly changing what Trevorrow had in mind. Though he and Derek Connolly are still credited as writers on the final product.

This version of Episode IX was radically different. Almost no Palpatine. Much more Rose. Kylo being haunted by Luke's ghost. This comic offers fans the chance to experience what could have been on some level. Winegarner says on his site that his dream would be for Marvel to someday publish his comic as an alternate version of Episode IX. You can read the Duel of the Fates comic right now on Andrew Winegarner's website.