Darth Vader as Luke Skywalker’s Dad (1978)
Most people in the late ’70s wouldn’t have recognized David Prowse’s face, but he helped create one of the most famous movie characters of all time. He was Darth Vader, the man behind the mask, and after Star Wars became a huge phenomenon, he was hounded by fans and reporters looking for clues not just about Vader but the future of the sci-fi franchise.
During one appearance in Berkeley, California in 1978, he was asked about a possible sequel, and he spilled the beans in a big way, revealing that we’d learn in the new movie that Darth Vader was actually Luke Skywalker’s father.
It was a bombshell, all right, and probably the world’s biggest spoiler. But there was just one problem: At the time he said it, an early draft of The Empire Strikes Back didn’t mention anything about Darth and Luke’s familial connection. That plot point didn’t come until much later.
