The Empire Strikes Back is considered one of Star Wars' best movies even decades later, but the truth is, this movie made one major mistake, and Star Wars still hasn't fixed it. Star Wars movies and TV shows have made numerous surprising choices over the years, which is in part why they frequently stir up at least a little controversy.
In the prequels, this included the addition of brand-new concepts like midi-chlorians or Anakin Skywalker's Chosen One prophecy. In the sequels, this meant a range of things, from making Luke Skywalker hopeless and in exile to Palpatine's resurrection. Yet, the original trilogy had its issues too, especially this Empire Strikes Back mistake that still isn't fixed.
Leia Said She "Always" Knew Luke Was Her Brother – So Why Did She Kiss Him?
Luke and Leia speak to one another in Return of the Jedi
In Return of the Jedi, when Luke came to Leia with the news that they were siblings, Leia wasn't shocked, as one would expect. Rather, she tells Luke that part of her always knew that they were siblings. On the one hand, this was yet another Skywalker family tree plot twist. However, this one came with a major issue.
Namely, if Leia knew Luke was her brother, why would she kiss him in The Empire Strikes Back? This is a disturbing question that has haunted the franchise for decades, and despite the movies and shows that have been released since—including those that feature Luke and Leia—Star Wars has never made much of an effort to resolve this.
This is particularly troubling, because that kiss really cannot be played off as non-romantic. For one, Leia had fully grabbed Luke's face to pull him in, and it was a clearly passionate kiss. For another, Luke gave Han a smug, satisfied smile after the kiss ended, which is further proof it wasn't platonic (or familial).
The In-Universe Explanation For This Kiss Just Doesn't Cut It
Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back – Luke and Leia Kiss
One would think that the implications of such a kiss would have Star Wars in a rush to explain it away, but that hasn't happened. Whereas there has been plenty of discussion about Rey and Ben Solo's kiss in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker not being romantic (which remains controversial within the fanbase), this kiss is largely left unaddressed.
This is particularly odd, given Luke and Leia's kiss is objectively a much bigger problem for the franchise. Yet, the clearest explanation for it that we have gotten to date is that Leia was trying to prove to Han that she didn't have feelings for him and, more than likely, make him a bit jealous as well.
That may work as an explanation if Leia was simply kissing another man, but this doesn't adequately explain why Leia would knowingly kiss her own brother in a way that seems overtly romantic. Of course, the real reason is that George Lucas hadn't decided that they were siblings yet.
In-universe, though, Star Wars still has plenty of explaining to do when it comes to Luke and Leia's kiss in The Empire Strikes Back.
