The Shaman of the Whills traces its origins to the early drafts of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, which George Lucas stated was a story told in the Journal of the Whills, a record of galactic knowledge. The Shaman of the Whills was first specifically mentioned in the screenplay for Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith, in a now-deleted scene that featured the spirit of Qui-Gon Jinn communing with Yoda. In the scene, which was never filmed, Jinn stated that eternal consciousness had been accomplished by a Shaman of the Whills. A cut line from a later scene also had Yoda saying that the path to eternal consciousness was a secret of the "Ancient Order of the Whills."