As I previously said, there is an amazing cut scene in the Empire Strikes Back. And it would be excellent if Adywan try to restore the death of General Veers. I know, in the Expanded Universe Veers didn’t die in the movie, but it wont be bother anyone. So the fact is, we have the description of the full scene with pictures. And I think, Adywan is the man how has the ability to restore the scene and fit into the movie. It’s a great effect shot, seeing the AT-AT head exploded because one of the Rebel pilot fly into Veers cocpit.
So here is the description taken from the famous T-bone:
Originally, in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, General Veers wasn't supposed to make it off Hoth. One of the Rebel pilots, Hobbie (according to the fourth draft script) crashes into General Veers' cockpit window, taking down the huge walker.
Here is an excerpt from the EMPIRE 4th draft by Brackett and Kasdan:
INT WALKER NO. 1 - COCKPIT
CLOSE-UP VEERS inside Walker No. 1 cockpit. He speaks over the com-link as he studies various readouts.
VEERS
...yes, Lord Vader. I've reached the main
power generators and I'm destroying them now.
The shield will be down in moments.
You may start your landing...
PILOT
Look out!
Veers looks out the cockpit window.
EXT BATTLEFIELD - HOTH
FULL SHOT of Hobbie's speeder, Rogue Four, as it races over camera right at the head of the oncoming walker.
INT WALKER NO. 1 - COCKPIT
OVER THE SHOULDER of Veers and his pilots as the speeder crashes into the front window.
PILOT
He's going to...
Impact, huge explosion.
EXT BATTLEFIELD - HOTH
FULL SHOT of Walker No. 1 with head exploding and frying into a million pieces.
EXT BATTLEFIELD - HOTH
FULL SHOT Walker No. 1. After a few moments the headless walker topples over on its side in a cloud of snow.
EXT BATTLEFIELD - HOTH
3/4 REAR LOW ANGLE SHOT of the giant Walker No. 2. It stops in mid-step. A muffled explosion is heard, then the insides of the giant walker come blasting out every conceivable opening. It sits dead in its tracks, smoking like a locomotive.
EXT BATTLEFIELD - HOTH
LOW ANGLE MEDIUM SHOT of Walker No. 1 as it advances at camera, going slightly right to left. The smoldering walker that Luke just blasted stands dead in its tracks in the background.
The black and white images included below are storyboards from EMPIRE. The first one clearly shows what happens in the scene but we still don't have any hard evidence telling us if it was actually filmed or not. Scott Weller, however, tells me that Julian Glover informed him in an April 2004 e-mail that the death of General Veers "wasn't scripted, let alone filmed which led to speculation that he would appear in the next film." The script was in constant flux so who knows if it was ever truly scripted.
I found the first image below on the web a long while back (I think it was www.starwarscutscenes.com) and my friend and fellow cut scenes historian, Ryan Silva, tells me it's from the original Fan Club Newsletter called "Bantha Tracks" - Issue #14, page 2, which I have lying around in storage somewhere. Man, I miss that newsletter, but Starwars.com is posting them all again, so head over there if you're not familiar with the old fan club.
The second image below was found on the great Propstore of London website, hence the watermarks. It has some different scene numbers and stuff so there's not much to link it to this particular scene, however it's a pretty big coincidence if you ask me. This looks like it takes place right after the first storyboard. It even names Hobbie as the rebel pilot.
On June 20, 2001, Starwars.com added the following to the facts we know for sure:
In the original script of The Empire Strikes Back, Veers perished when his walker was rammed by a snowspeeder. The scene never made it into the final film, and as such, Veers' life was spared. He appeared in early draft scripts of Return of the Jedi, though his character does not return in that film. Producer Robert Watts, who had a cameo appearance as an AT-ST pilot in Jedi, has once said that his character was actually General Veers, but it seems doubtful that Veers would have such a demotion to a simple pilot.
I'm also including a picture of Hobbie from the Starwars.com for good measure. This shot wasn't in the film and he's relevant to this scene, so why not.
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Another thing that's been brought up in discussion with fellow fans is the AT-AT whose head explodes in the film. This is the one that Luke allegedly takes down by tossing a grenade into its belly. Why the head would explode from a grenade in the gut is beyond me. Was that shot of the walker's head exploding originally intended to be Veers' walker or did they just take the "exploding head" idea from the early draft and incorporate it into the film? I have not seen any other stills from this scene so I can't be sure if it was actually filmed or not. The scene is in the novelization, however.
While we're talking about the AT-AT Luke destroyed, we might as well note that in the 4th draft, the walker in question wasn't supposed to topple over as it does in the film, but instead just stand there. Check out this 4th draft excerpt:
EXT BATTLEFIELD - HOTH
3/4 REAR LOW ANGLE SHOT of the giant Walker No. 2. It stops in mid-step. A muffled explosion is heard, then the insides of the giant walker come blasting out every conceivable opening. It sits dead in its tracks, smoking like a locomotive.
EXT BATTLEFIELD - HOTH
LOW ANGLE MEDIUM SHOT of Walker No. 1 as it advances at camera, going slightly right to left. The smoldering walker that Luke just blasted stands dead in its tracks in the background.
