10 Things You Didn't Know About Count Dooku
From family drama to Christopher Lee's other nearly-Star Wars role, and more Count Dooku goodness...
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00From what went into making that epic lightsaber, to how the mighty Christopher Lee very nearly
00:06ended up in a different Star Wars role altogether, here are those Count Dooku facts and secrets
00:12you've likely never discovered until now.
00:15I'm Gareth from What Culture Star Wars and here are 10 Things You Didn't Know About
00:20Count Dooku
00:2110.
00:23His all-important connection to Sifo-Dyas
00:26Count Dooku once sat as a respected member of the Jedi Order.
00:29However, upon discovering just how corrupt the Order actually was, Dooku ultimately became
00:34frustrated and turned his back on his one-time allies.
00:38Before his wander over to the dark side, though, one of Dooku's close pals, Master Sifo-Dyas,
00:42who'd been having visions of an incoming conflict and had also grown disillusioned
00:47by the Order, set into motion a plan that would ultimately change the galaxy forever.
00:52Being somewhat rogue, Sifo-Dyas ordered the creation of a clone army from the planet Kamino,
00:58something a now-turned Dooku was aware of.
01:01In the end, as revealed in Kaven Scott's Dooku Jedi Lost audiobook, Darth Sidious,
01:06after initially building this secret army into his grand plan to overthrow the Jedi,
01:11soon felt that Dyas was growing into too much of a threat to his vision.
01:15So in a rather tragic turn of events, Dooku was ordered to assassinate his one-time mate
01:20by his new master.
01:21Something the powerful Sith Apprentice achieved via untraceable Pyke Syndicate murder.
01:26And just like that, another potential speed bump for the soon-to-be Emperor of the Galactic
01:30Empire was shuffled out of existence.
01:35How They Shot Those Christopher Lee Fight Scenes
01:38Living one hell of a life already by the time he got around to shooting on Episode 2, Attack
01:42of the Clones, the late, great Christopher Lee had battled Nazis and become an iconic
01:47part of cinema history with his work in everything from Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings
01:51flicks to Terrence Fisher's Dracula.
01:53However, that did mean he was coming in at a silvery 80 when bringing the formidable
01:58Count Dooku to live-action life.
02:00And while Lee was still fairly game to get his hands dirty on George Lucas' set, a
02:04double was actually required in order to capture some of the more athletic Sith Lord movements
02:08seen in his duels with Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda.
02:13Swapping out the actor who would regularly boast about his record-setting amount of on-screen
02:17sword fights for a stunt performer when needed for wider shots, Lee's face was then seamlessly
02:23CGI'd on top of said fighting double in post.
02:26But that's still very much a badass Lee swinging his saber whenever we lean in for
02:30a scintillating close-up.
02:31Christopher Lee nearly played a very different role in Star Wars
02:38Keeping with the iconic thespian who gripped the prequels from the second he arrived on
02:42the Force-sensitive scene, it turns out that Christopher Lee very nearly rocked up in the
02:46galaxy far, far away in an entirely different but still notably despicable capacity.
02:51Some 25 years before he donned the swishing cape and curved red lightsaber, Lee was actually
02:56in the running to play the slimy Grand Moff Tarkin, seen routinely keeping Darth Vader
03:01in check on board the Death Star.
03:03However, Lee would decide against committing himself to George Lucas' universe at that
03:07time, instead choosing to suggest his good pal Peter Cushing for the role of the high-ranking
03:11Empire officer.
03:12Cushing would, of course, absolutely nail the cold and clinical part of Tarkin.
03:17Yet it is interesting to note how different a new hope could have looked with Lee in the
03:21saddle of the superweapons commander.
03:25Family Ties Born into a wealthy and politically powerful
03:29family, the second the Jedi came calling for a young Dooku, he was always destined to become
03:33a significant figure in the galaxy.
03:36In the wake of his aforementioned decision to turn his back on the Order, Dooku would
03:39return home and finally take up the title of Count.
03:43But he wasn't the only child Mama and Papa Dooku brought into this galaxy far, far away.
03:48His brother, Ramil, acted as the Count of Serrano before he took over.
03:51And by took over, I definitely mean Dooku took his life in the lead-up to the former
03:55Jedi seizing said title.
03:57Jenda, his sister, wasn't actually on his radar until he unintentionally bumped into
04:01her during a festival, as you do.
04:04Making it two for two when it comes to family fellings, Dooku eventually had Asajj Ventress
04:08dispatch her on the back of Jenda, trying her best to convince him to stay away from
04:12all things dark side.
04:14With family like this, who needs enemies, am I right?
04:17It's really sad, isn't it?
04:20What Went Into That Lightsaber?
04:22Much like the actor himself who breathed live-action life into Darth Tyrannus, Count Dooku was
04:27very much regarded as a highly respected swordsman.
04:30The design of his unmistakable lightsaber only made him that much more deadly with a
04:34glowing blade.
04:36Opting for form two, Makashi, this form was characterised by its elegance, balance and
04:40fluidity, Dooku decided that he could take the form to new heights with a new design
04:45of laser sword.
04:46Curving his blade's hilt, this adapted design helped Dooku enhance his lunges and slashes,
04:52when duking it out with Jedi and any other enemies in his way.
04:55It's worth noting that this form was barely used by the time of the Age of the Galactic
04:59Republic 2, with Makashi being created and primarily used during the Old Republic days.
05:05This means that next to no one used or really knew how to combat the form during Dooku's
05:09time in the Sith spotlight, making him an even deadlier opponent for all who stood before
05:14him.
05:155.
05:16He Was The Last Of The Lost Twenty
05:19Despite hardly acting as the first Jedi to have turned his back on the Order since its
05:22creation thousands of years before the events of the prequel trilogy, Dooku's departure
05:27from the light side did actually come in the thick of what is classed by many as one of
05:31the darkest and lowest periods in Jedi history.
05:34Growing up part of a group of Jedi Masters known as the Lost Twenty, each and every member
05:38of this infamous set of force wielders decided to exit the Order on the back of ideological
05:43differences with those running the ancient religious order, or just the concept of the
05:47Jedi altogether.
05:49In short, this lot weren't just teased over to the side of evil with the promise of UNLIMITED
05:54POWER.
05:55They very much believed the Jedi were just out and out wrong.
05:58All twenty of the Lost Jedi were immortalised via bronze busts in the Jedi archives, as
06:02a reminder of the imperfections of the Order in the years after their defections, and how
06:07Jedi Masters must always take the time to improve themselves and learn from their own
06:11mistakes.
06:12Dooku acted as the final member of this significant group, earning his own bust seen in an Attack
06:16of the Clones deleted scene before the Order was all but wiped out in Revenge of the Sith.
06:214.
06:22He Was Very Nearly A Woman In Attack Of The Clones
06:25Never one to completely waste a concept, even if it doesn't necessarily fit what it was
06:29originally designed for, the origins of Count Dooku would actually pave the way for another
06:34prominent Star Wars character.
06:36In early drafts of Attack of the Clones, George Lucas had actually envisioned the fallen Jedi
06:40as a female alien by the name of Countess Dooku.
06:44And while a Medusa-like version of the character was intriguing despite not being utilised
06:48down the road, another visual variation of the antagonist would actually act as an inspiration
06:53for none other than Asajj Ventress.
06:55A Force user who would go on to become an apprentice of Dooku down the road, but more
06:59on that later.
07:01In the end, Lucas decided against these designs the second it became clear that Christopher
07:05Lee was keen to come aboard.
07:073.
07:08He's Had Many Apprentices Speaking of Dooku's history of apprentices
07:13over the years, Asajj Ventress isn't the only savage presence to have taken up a spot
07:17under the Count's learning tree.
07:19During his time under the tutelage of Darth Sidious, Dooku trained and guided three notably
07:24impressionable souls in the ways of both the Force and lightsaber mastery.
07:28On top of the deadly assassin Ventress, Savage Opress, Maul's brother, and Quinlan Vos, Ventress'
07:34one-time lover, both trained under Dooku at one point or another.
07:38Dooku didn't give a toss about any long-standing rule of two, clearly.
07:42He's also had a hand in teaching General Grievous how to duel with a laser sword, before
07:46the cyborg Separatist Force was bested by Obi-Wan Kenobi in Revenge of the Sith.
07:50Of course, when operating as a Jedi Master, Dooku also trained Kenobi's former master,
07:54Qui-Gon Jinn, along with a number of other Force-sensitive folk in Legends lore in the
07:59wake of his defection.
08:00Simply put, Dooku's teachings could very much be felt across the galaxy.
08:052.
08:06He Had Two Legendary Masters And there's a good reason just about every
08:11Jedi, Sith, and Force user who found themselves interacting with the legendary Count Dooku
08:15wanted to learn everything they could from him.
08:17Did you see who taught him the ways of the light and dark sides of the bloody Force?
08:21Hilariously, Dooku actually wasn't all that interested in being the mighty Grand Master
08:25Yoda's apprentice at first, instead wanting to learn under the tutelage of Lynae Costana,
08:30due to her being known as someone who was tasked with chasing down dark side relics
08:34from across the galaxy.
08:36Obviously, while sitting alongside the little green legend though, Dooku found himself being
08:40very much immersed in substantial Jedi Order issues and missions, even watching his master
08:45best a giant Tarentatech on Kashyyyk at one point.
08:49And adding to an already extensive knowledge of the Force, and how to effectively wield
08:53a lightsaber, Dooku would then end up being recruited by the Dark Lord of the Sith in
08:57the Shadows, Darth Sidious, as an unofficial apprentice as he further expanded on his sizeable
09:02understanding of the Force.
09:04As far as teachers go, then, you likely won't find many better than the person who was moulded
09:08by arguably two of the most powerful entities ever to have existed.
09:13Not too shabby.
09:141.
09:15HE ONCE BECAME A VAMPIRE How on earth do you top a Force-sensitive
09:20bloodsucker, eh?
09:21In what was clearly a sweet nod to the legendary career of Dooku actor Christopher Lee, the
09:25comic book miniseries Star Wars Adventures Tales from Vader's Castle actually involved
09:30a story that saw the devious fallen Jedi becoming a very different kind of Count.
09:36Interacting with bat-like creatures who possessed the ability to transform humans into a similar
09:40form of monstrosity, Cave and Scott's Tales saw Dooku very much becoming Dracula-esque
09:45in this tribute of sorts to Lee's work as the world's most famous vampire.
09:49Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of this 2018 development is the fact that the series
09:53is actually classed as canon, so who knows?
09:56We may yet see some undead Sith menaces coming to blows with our heroes in a Disney Plus
10:00series or nutty horror movie spin-off later down the road.
10:04For now, though, we'll just have to make do with a Dooku brandishing his fangs on the
10:08pages.
10:10And that's our list!
10:11Know of any other things people didn't know about Count Dooku?
10:13Let us know all about them in the comments section right down below and do not forget
10:16to like, share and click on that subscribe button while you're at it!
10:19Also, if you're into this kind of thing, then head on over to WhatCulture.com and find
10:23some more incredible articles just like the one that I wrote right here that this video
10:26is based on.
10:27I've been Gareth from WhatCulture Star Wars, may the Force be with you as always, and I
10:31hope I'll see you very, very soon.
10:33Bye bye!