While we're all focusing on what "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" is, let's take a moment to explore what it almost was. Pablo Hidalgo, a creative executive involved with the Lucasfilm Story Group, revealed that J.J. Abrams' newest addition to the saga almost shared its title with a Star Wars Expanded Universe novel: "Shadow of the Empire."
@justinlasalata for longest time, the TFA title was the same as an old novel. Thankfully it changed. :) With so many books, it's inevitable
— Pablo Hidalgo (@pablohidalgo) December 25, 2015
The novel mentioned in the tweet above was Steven Perry's 1996 book "Shadows of the Empire." As a part of a multi-platform campaign, LucasFilm created several books, video games and comics that took place between "Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi." Such a title would have been appropriate given the rise of The First Order in the film, though it may have caused some confusion.
@VegaArts_ @justinlasalata it was Shadow (singular) of the Empire for a while. — Pablo Hidalgo (@pablohidalgo) December 25, 2015
Though the storylines share few similarities, co-opting the title would have sent a conflicting message to "Star Wars" fans. Upon Disney's purchase of Lucasfilm, the Mouse House announced that the Expanded Universe would no longer be considered canon, or, official "Star Wars" history. Any use of shared titles would have muddied that idea.
Fortunately, the name change spared us all from any potential confusion and fans can now enjoy "The Force Awakens" without worrying about where it fits in the "Star Wars" EU timeline.
