Top 20 Times Star Wars Characters Went Beast Mode

“Star Wars: The Clone Wars” (2008-14; 2020) Few characters need incentive to go beast mode quite like Maul, so credit Ahsoka Tano for being able to keep up every step of the way. During the Siege of Mandalore, Ahsoka confronts Maul in the throne room on Sundari. Maul had hoped Anakin would arrive so he could kill him and deprive Darth Sidious of his new apprentice, a notion Ahsoka vehemently denies. This is ultimately the catalyst that leads to their climactic duel. Aside from the stellar animation, one reason this fight feels so visceral is the use of motion capture stunt performers. You can literally feel the intensity dripping from these two combatants, even though it’s Ahsoka’s will that ultimately prevails.

“Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones” (2002) Revenge is the path to the Dark Side, and this is where we first saw Anakin Skywalker flirt with his destiny. Born to a slave woman named Shmi, Anakin eventually earns his freedom as a young boy, leaving her behind. He returns to Tatooine years later in an attempt to liberate her, only to discover she’d been abducted by Tusken Raiders. He tracks the Raiders to their village, only to find Shmi near death. Her passing in his arms brings out his inner rage, prompting him to slaughter every Tusken Raider in the camp. This kind of mercilessness is what we’d come to expect from Darth Vader, and is only a taste of the senseless killing he’d exhibit in the next episode by slaying younglings.

“Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi” (2017) You don’t have to be a full-blown Jedi to go beast mode, as evidenced by this grudge match between Finn and Captain Phasma. Held captive on the Supremacy, Finn and Rose are set to be executed by Phasma’s stormtroopers, only to be rescued by Vice Admiral Holdo’s heroic sacrifice of jumping to hyperspace and scrambling the opposition. With the Supremacy falling to pieces, Finn engages Phasma with a Z6 riot control baton. Despite his intensity, Phasma’s experience is enough to send him to his apparent death, only for him to reappear and deal a devastating blow. The fight probably could’ve lasted longer, but at least Finn gets in one last good line before Phasma falls to her fiery demise.

“Star Wars: The Clone Wars” (2008-14; 2020) Continuing the presence of troopers on this list, clone trooper CT-5555, or “Fives,” uncovers a conspiracy when his comrade Tup begins displaying strange behavior. Upon going rogue on Kamino, Fives discovers an implant chip in Tup’s brain, but this insubordination leads him to being apprehended. Upon learning they intend to wipe his memory, Fives lashes out at the Kaminoan muscle in an impressive display of resilience. Fives’s entire mission to uncover the truth is admirable enough, but this is the epitome of his strength of character and motivation, regardless of the opposition.

#16: Grand Inquisitor vs. Kanan Jarrus & Ezra Bridger

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“Star Wars Rebels” (2014-18) The Inquisitors were terrific additions to “Star Wars” lore, but nowhere is their conflict with the Jedi arguably more pronounced than in this climactic bout against Kanan Jarrus and his Padawan. After Ezra Bridger rescues his master aboard the Sovereign, they’re confronted in the generator complex by the Grand Inquisitor. Wielding his signature lightsaber, the Grand Inquisitor lives up to his title by handling both combatants at once. However, once Ezra is knocked down to his supposed death, it’s Kanan’s turn to go beast mode. Incensed, Kanan is able to push the Grand Inquisitor to the edge, destroying his lightsaber and causing a cataclysmic chain reaction. The Grand Inquisitor elects to fall to his death below rather than live with failure.

#15: Darth Vader Removes Luke’s Hand

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“Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back” (1980) This probably isn’t the darkest moment in “Star Wars” history anymore, but the climax of “The Empire Strikes Back” is still the pinnacle of darker sequel storytelling. Luke’s first lightsaber duel with Darth Vader occurs in the bowels of Cloud City, ranging from the carbon-freezing chamber all the way to a processing vane. Luke was warned by Yoda and Obi-Wan not to challenge Vader, who makes good on their misgivings with a barrage of attacks. Vader eventually corners the young Jedi on a catwalk, ending the duel in brutal fashion by slicing off his right hand. Vader’s then able to tamp down the beast within to give a shocking revelation, but it doesn’t make us forget the absolute might he displayed.

“Star Wars: The Clone Wars” (2008-14; 2020) By now, people should know not to cross Anakin Skywalker and those he cares about, but apparently Barriss Offee didn’t get the memo. When Ahsoka is wrongly arrested for a deadly bombing, Anakin goes on a mission to uncover the real culprit. His investigation ultimately leads to Jedi Padawan Barriss Offee, who is ultimately revealed to have framed her friend. At first, it seems like the corrupted Jedi will go beast mode herself, wielding Asajj Ventress’s lightsabers, but once they take things outside among the younglings, Anakin shows his full strength. He beats Barriss down into submission, before Forcing her up against a tree for good measure.

“Star Wars Rebels” (2014-18) This fight carries a lot of weight. It sees Ahsoka Tano confront her old master, now in the identity of Darth Vader, on the planet Malachor. While she’s also motivated by defending the young Ezra Bridger, she also has reason to avenge Anakin against the Sith Lord who corrupted his spirit. By all means, Ahsoka fights with the ferocity befitting of Anakin’s Padawan, but Vader’s no slouch either. He’s ostensibly able to win the match by Force-pushing Ahsoka off the structure, but the latter gets back into the fight by dealing a devastating blow to his helmet. The end of the fight is initially cut off, but a later episode reveals her ending it by fracturing the floor beneath them.

“The Mandalorian” (2019-) After Din Djarin realizes that selling Grogu to the Client was a mistake, he returns all chromed out in Beskar armor for a reroll. This shiny one-man wrecking crew wipes out a whole base of stormtroopers with a furious rain of kicks, punches, elbows, blaster fire, electric staff strikes, fireballs, and finally a sick quadruple kill. After saving the universe’s cutest baby from a creepy doctor, this nanny’s rampage isn’t quite over, as he’s soon ambushed by his bounty hunter colleagues. Mando would go on to flex many of the same moves on beefy New Republic guard droids a few episodes later - showing himself to be an equal-opportunity scrapper.

#11: Obi-Wan Rocks Vader

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“Obi-Wan Kenobi” (2022) Speaking of histories, the one between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader is practically a saga all its own. While this isn’t the canonical climactic duel between them, it certainly feels like it. In the final episode of the “Obi-Wan Kenobi” miniseries, Vader tracks his former master to a rocky moon and immediately shows why he’s the strongest Force-user in the galaxy. As impressive as destroying the ground beneath Obi-Wan and burying him with rocks is, it’s Obi-Wan’s response that earns him this spot on our list. Not only is he able to keep himself from getting crushed in a helpless position, but he then literally rocks Vader right back. To add insult to injury, Obi-Wan ends things with a very similar helmet slash.

“Star Wars Rebels” (2014-18) On the Outer Rim world of Atollon resides a powerful entity who embodies the middle ground between the Light and Dark Sides of the Force. The gigantic Bendu is usually pretty chill, helping Jedi Knight Kanan Jarrus and his Padwan Ezra Bridger on several occasions. That is until Jarrus calls the big guy gutless for not helping the Rebels against the Empire. The enraged Bendu generates a Category 5 Force hurricane that is easily one of the most jacked displays of Force powers ever seen on-screen. Unfortunately, the being attacks both sides of the conflict, blowing up several walkers and ships with lightning bolts. Eventually laid low by Imperial firepower, even in defeat he gets the last laugh, fortelling Admiral Thrawn’s downfall before mysteriously slipping away.

#9: Yoda vs. Sidious

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“Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith” (2005) The normally stoic Jedi Grand Master seems to tap into his feelings for his faceoff with Darth Sidious. When Yoda enters Palpatine’s office, he instantly KOs the guards before trading insults with the hooded horror - who nails the sage with Force lightning. Quickly recovering, Yoda counters with a telekinetic backhand. Sidious tries to run, but the little green guy unleashes a weltering lightsaber barrage. The duel spills into the Galactic Senate Chamber where our diminutive hero seems to get the upper hand until an explosion sends him crashing to the ground. While failing to take out Palpatine, Yoda survives to train the next generation. From his pithy jibes to his acrobatic attacks, this time our green guru didn’t hold anything back.

#8: Boba Fett Takes on Stormtroopers

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“The Mandalorian” (2019-) The original bounty hunter in Beskar is back from the bowels of the Sarlacc Pit and he really wants his armor. With Grogu occupied, Mando faces off against Boba Fett and Fennec Shand, another revenant assassin. The trio of pro-killers team up however when Stormtroopers crash the party. Armed only with a simple melee weapon called a gaffi stick, Fett smashes in the helmets and brittle bones of these unlucky soldiers. But that’s really just the beginning. As reinforcements swarm in, Fett squeezes into his iconic suit and unleashes a rampage so furious the surviving troopers turn tail and run. Whether using a simple wooden mace or a rocket launcher, this grizzled clone proves that even old dogs can still unleash their inner wolf.

#7: Rey Defeats Kylo Ren

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“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” (2015) As Palpatine’s granddaughter, this Jakku junker has many abilities considered… unnatural. Kylo Ren learns this the hard way during their skirmish on the surface of Starkiller Base. While the Vader wannabe initially knocks Rey out, Finn valiantly stalls Ren until she recovers. Drawing on the Force, she proves to be more than a match for the son of Leia and Han. Of course, Ren’s wound from being gut-shot by Chewbacca helps level the playing field. Sure, Rey displays more raw power when she kills her sort-of grandfather on Exegol. But her breakout beatdown of Ren sees her really hulk out.

#6: Obi-Wan Cuts Darth Maul in Half

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“Star Wars: The Phantom Menace” (1999) This horned apprentice of Darth Sidious almost kills a young Ben Kenobi before actually offing his teacher Qui-Gon Jinn. Watching powerlessly as his father figure is gutted, Obi-Wan is overcome with rage, letting loose a furious series of strikes in one of the franchise's best battles ever. Maul nearly ices Obi-Wan again, but at the last moment our Jedi gets the jump on his adversary, slicing the killer in half. Kenobi’s furor resurfaces in the last of the prequels when he cuts off his former student Anakin’s legs and arm, leaving the chosen one smoldering on a lava beach.

“Star Wars: The Clone Wars” (2008-14; 2020) Former Sith apprentice Savage Oppress has a good thing going with his brother on Mandalore… until the Emperor shows up. At first, Maul begs Palpatine to take him back, but the galactic ruler has other plans. Sheev ambidextrously outduels both Zabrak warriors in a whirlwind of saber swings and bruising Force throws - not to mention all the harsh disses! He then brutally kills Oppress while Maul watches, before torturing his former pupil with Force lightning. The one-time Senator shows no mercy in this matchup. With the hate flowing like a mighty river, he dethrones Maul, proving why HE’S the master of mayhem in this universe.

#4: Luke Decimates the Dark Troopers

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“The Mandalorian” (2019-) Surprise Luke Skywalker is always a delight, but maybe not if you’re one of the bad guys. In the Season 2 finale of “The Mandalorian,” our heroes are pinned down by the uber durable Dark Troopers. Defeating just one was already a struggle for Mando, so a whole battalion seems like impossible odds. But an incoming X-wing and a familiar green lightsaber makes this a slaughter going in the other direction. While we don’t see his face, a hooded Luke makes the overpowered droids look like they’re nothing, which they definitely are to him. He slices through them with reckless abandon, capping things off by breaking the last one down with the Force. Absolute skill.

#3: Maul’s Venator Rampage

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“Star Wars: The Clone Wars” (2008-14; 2020) Legs or not, you don’t want to get in this Sith Lord’s way. However, if you’re Ahsoka Tano and Palpatine just flipped all your clone buddies’ murder switches, you might want to hide in the wake of his chaos. This is exactly why she springs Maul from his Force-proof Mandalorian vault after saving him from being executed. Unarmed but hardly defenseless, Maul goes absolutely berserker, turning the ship itself into a grizzly weapon. As a follow-up, he proceeds to rip the Venator-class Star Destroyer from hyperspace with his bare hands. He even escapes by snagging Ashoka’s ride. Of his many lethal frenzies, none is more ferocious than this.

“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” (2016) In the finale of this “Star Wars” standalone, our rebels-gone-rogue succeed in transmitting the schematics for the Death Star to their command ship, the Profundity. But Vader storms the ship in all his dark glory - cutting down Rebels left and right. As the freedom fighters fumble with the door, which Vader may be holding back, the towering Sith lord looms closer and closer. The scene almost feels like something out of a horror flick more than a space fantasy, but it’s just Vader being, well, Vader. Honestly, this may be his fiercest appearance, with both his power and fury on full display.

“Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi” (1983) When Emperor Palpatine reveals that it’s a trap, Luke is baited into battling his father. The Jedi recaptures his cool but snaps again when Vader learns the truth about Leia. At last, Luke goes true beast mode, unleashing a torrent of visceral, grunting lightsaber strikes! The intensity of this Oedipal offensive leaves the man formerly known as Anakin reeling. Luke even chops off his father’s hand before finally taming the violent emotions of his heart. The fact our young Jedi muzzled his wild blowup when it really counted makes it all the more intense! This kickflip from beast to peace completes the hero’s journey, and grants the distant galaxy a (temporary) Sheev reprieve.