Star Wars: The Force Awakens is about to blast its way into you living room with its home video release early this April, but if you want to know just what your hard-earned dollars are going to get you, you'll want to check out this breakdown of the Blu-ray's deleted scenes. There are apparently seven of them which range from scenes that would have rounded out a particular character a bit more, introduced them earlier, or even filled in the blanks between sequences. None of them are essential to the film-watching experience (hence why they were deleted), but all of them should be essential watching for all Star Wars fans out there.

EW has a great look at the seven deleted scenes that will appear on Star Wars: The Force Awakens home-video release. Not only do they offer up new never-before-seen images from the movie's production, but they have a nice breakdown of the available scenes. Check them all out below:


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Image via Disney/Lucasfilm

Abrams had this to say about the movie's deleted scenes and the reason they hit the cutting room floor:

“There are so many things that end up getting cut because of the greater good, because of the rhythm of the sequence or the need to get on with it, a sense of redundancy. You don’t know any of these things when you’re making the movie, of course. It was sometimes after months of working on something that you realize finally — you just don’t need it.”


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Image via David James/Lucasfilm

Originally intended to appear early in the movie, this deleted scene saw Boyega’s FN-2187 still a part of the First Order, but already questioning his purpose. This scene appears after Finn's mask is marked with the blood of a comrade but before the troopers round up the villagers. Finn is then faced with a difficult decision when he finds a villager hiding in the shadows of a small building. As for what he does next, well, you'll just have to check out the deleted scene for yourself.


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Image via David James/Lucasfilm

This particular deleted scene comes exclusive on the digital version of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which is also included in the Blu-ray combo packs as a free download. This is the scene thatChris Corbould (SFX Supervisor) mentioned when Steve Weintraub had a chance to chat with him a while back.

As the First Order attacks the castle run by Lupita Nyong’o’s Maz Kanata, Han, Finn, and Chewie come face to face with a squad of stormtroopers in her basement. Han does what he does best and talks his way out of trouble, bringing just another scene of swagger to the iconic character's long list of highlights.


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Image via Disney/Lucasfilm

If you wanted more Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), you're in luck. This deleted scene sees the leader of the First Order taking a squad of Stormtroopers to inspect the Millennium Falcon at its crash-site on the surface of Starkiller Base. As you might expect, this moment causes some psychological strife for Kylo Ren, not only because the Light Side continues to exert its pull on him but because he knows that his own father is attempting to stop him.


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Image via David James/Lucasfilm

Abrams, seen here in a newly released behind-the-scenes shot with Ford, had this to say about the process for cutting scenes from the film:

“You never go into a day of shooting and say, 'This is probably going to be on the cutting room floor. Every day feels as essential as anything else. It’s always annoying to realize that you wasted anyone’s time on shooting something that wasn’t necessary."

While the deleted scenes obviously didn't make it into the film for a variety of reasons, they'll still be must-watch moments for die-hard Star Wars fans. As the following information on deleted scenes reveals, some of those moments may not have affected the overall story but are still a part of the experience nonetheless.


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Image via Lucasfilm

Carrie Fisher's General Leia was originally intended to be introduced much earlier in the film in a scene that shows her reacting to the First Order's massacre on Jakku. Emun Elliott, who plays the Resistance communications officer Major Brance, also gets to share a bit of the spotlight as he receives a distress signal from BB-8 that clues them into the attack. (Note: The above image, as well as the following ones, were previously released with the film and are simply stand-ins for the related deleted scene explanations.)


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Image via Disney/Lucasfilm

Oscar Isaac also makes the deleted scene list in a sequence called, "X-Wings Prepare for Lightspeed." In that scene, Poe Dameron leads his squadron of Resistance fighters into an assault on Starkiller Base. Though most of the aerial battles took place in the skies over various planets, this one would have had the starships flying among the stars.


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Image via Lucasfilm

Don't worry, John Boyega and Daisy Ridley get in on the deleted scene action as well. This one takes place after Finn is injured in the lightsaber duel against Kylo Ren. Rey is back at the Resistance base watching over her him and getting an update on his condition from Dr. Kalonia (Harriet Walton).


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Image via Lucasfilm

In the aforementioned interview, Steve also had a chance to talk to Roger Guyett (VFX Supervisor ILM), who talked about the snowspeeder chase that had to be cut from the film. While we don't have an updated look at Star Wars: The Force Awakens version of the speeder (which I'd love to see), we do know that the scene features Finn and Rey boosting one of these devices from the Starkiller Base in order to escape. This deleted sequence connects the dots between how they got from the base's interior to the snow-covered forest to battle Kylo Ren.

Be sure to check out the Star Wars: The Force Awakens Blu-ray early this April. For more on Star Wars, take a look at our recent stories below:


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Image via Disney/Lucasfilm

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Image via Disney/Lucasfilm