A long time ago, George Lucas had a dream of a movie. But the story was so huge he couldn’t fit it all in one picture. Inspired by mythology, recurring history, and the older classic style of serialized films, he came up with a grand saga. We now know this amazing movie myth as the Star Wars Saga. In addition to the sheer size of the story, it was so ambitious that the technology to do it did not exist. Yet Lucas had an overall plan from the beginning, the question wasn’t was there a story, but would he be able to complete it.
The Initial Story
The part featuring Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie and the droids vs Darth Vader and his minions was the easiest to start with. It had originally been conceived as episode 6 but became episode 4.
The original Star Wars was not especially easy, given that what existed of the special effects industry had languished. While he wasn’t satisfied with all the effects and aliens, the multitudes loved the story of the farm boy and the rogue rescuing the fiery princess and destroying the massive weapon! Yet it was just the tip of the iceberg, there was a backstory basically written and a future for the Star Wars saga that George Lucas hoped to tell. It depended entirely on it earning enough money: and a clever bit of maneuvering to get the merchandise rights.
Just in case it didn’t succeed, Alan Dean Foster, who had ghostwritten the original Star Wars novelization, was hired to right a sequel. This book was Splinter of the Mind’s Eye, starring Luke, Leia and the Droids.
After Star Wars was released, it became apparent that my story–however many films it took to tell–was only one of thousands that could be told about the characters who inhabit its galaxy. But these were nto stories that I was destined to tell. Instead they would spring from the imagination of other writers, inspired by the glimpse of a galaxy that Star Wars provided. Today it is an amazing, if unexpected, legacy of Star Wars that so many gifted writers are contributing new stories to the Saga. – George Lucas, Splinter of the Mind’s Eye Forward 1993
The Star Wars Saga Continued
The Empire Strikes Back was a game changer. Originally, the rough drafts had Anakin being off elsewhere training Luke’s twin sister. Now the story adapted, with Anakin becoming Vader and Leia becoming the sister. This set not only Return of the Jedi’s course (defeat Vader either by death or redemption) but the prequels as well (by revealing how he became Vader in the first place).
Return of the Jedi’s shocking ending would open the door to the past. How could anyone see Darth Vader redeemed, and not wonder how Anakin Skywalker had fallen to such evil?
The Challenges of Making the Star Wars Saga
In order to pull off the original Star Wars, George Lucas had to literally reinvent the special effectes industry, by creating Industrial Light and Magic, a company dedicated to it.
Given his clever manuevering to get the merchandise rights, Lucas now had the funds to take total control of his story and continue it. Still, there were limits in technology to create these worlds as well as funding. The first thing he did, while Star Wars was still in theaters, was add Episode IV a New Hope as a subtitle. This indicated that there were more stories before even while he was working on future story of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
The Empire Strikes Back had less in the way of strange aliens, and star battles. But it made up for this in the massive twist of a small green eared mentor, Vader’s jaw dropping announcement about being Luke’s father, and the shock ending of Han being left in carbonite. There was also tauntauns and ground battles that needed stop motion animation. The invention of Yoda was a massive addition to the Star Wars saga, not only in terms of special effects and character creation, but as an important member of the story as well.
Return of the Jedi rolled out with more bizarre aliens, with a lot of costumes, including everything from big green piglikie aliens to little furry ewoks that needed a lot of little people for roles. There were also puppets like the huge Jabba, Sy Snootles, and a return of Yoda to contribute to making the galaxy of the Star Wars saga even more vast and bizarre.
ILM : Industrial Light and Magic
In order to pull off the original Star Wars, he had to literally reinvent the special effects industry, by creating Industrial Light and Magic. This included advances in model making, stop motion animation, computer animation and more. The famous or infamous program Photoshop was born here. It’s accomplishments went beyond movie making and affected publishing, video game development and animation. The amibitous nature of the Star Wars saga forced them to push the envelope.
The Delay in the Star Wars Saga Prequel Era
When did you decide to go back and do Episode I, II, and III? – Allan Kaush
“Well, I’ve always intended to do it. It’s just when I finished the first three, I decided I needed to take a hiatus. I spent my time working on Skywalker Ranch, I started advancing some of the technologies and doing some of the other kinds of movies that I wanted to do. I’d worked on Star Wars for nine years and I was interested in doing other things for a while. Plus, the technology hadn’t evolved enough for me to really be able to get back and do what I wanted to do.” – George Lucas
Star Wars Insider 26 George Lucas Preparing the Star Wars Prequels, Transcript of Star Wars Q & A from the Second Star Wars Summit April 20 1995 at Skywalker Ranch Transcribed and Graphed by Allan Kausch
During the hiatus, he worked on things like Willow and Young indiana Jones. Young Indiana Jones gave him a chance to figure out how to make a quality series with a lower budget.
Between the Star Wars Saga Movie Eras
Meanwhile, Star Wars shifted to the small screen. His daughter, Katie Lucas, loved ewoks, so George Lucas created an Ewok movie. After a sequel was made. An animated Ewoks and Droids Adventure hour was also created.
Only Ewoks made it to a second season. The animation was extremely expensive and ahead of its time, though some think its now dated. It also had some limitations due to industry standards insisting no guns were allowed. The second ewok season was sweetened up and less popular, due to competing with many other shows that were ‘baby’ shows like baby muppets and so on. West End Games also created an RPG for Star Wars at this time. Soon after, then Heir to the Empire, Dark Empire and new video games were released.
One critical detail with these other media: they were not allowed to touch the prequel era. This part of the Star Wars saga was off limits until Lucas chose to expand upon it in a movie. Whereas the future, post Return of the Jedi was allowed. While Lucas had vague ideas on what he might do there, he knew it was unlikely he’d get to it.
Dinosaurs: A New Hope for Star Wars Prequels
The changing point came with Jurassic Park. Once realistic dinosaurs were walking about onscreen, Lucas felt the technology at caught up to his vision, and was affordable enough to pull off the prequels. He first tested the waters of public reception by going for a multimedia blitz for a story called Shadows of the Empire, billed as having everything but the movie. It included a video game, comics, a novel, action figures, trading cards, all showing a different aspect of the story of the events between Empire and Jedi. When this was a successful sale, he set to work on rereleasing the original trilogy, and prepping a story for the prequels.
Obviously the original trilogy special edition is famous, or infamous, due to changes. Puppets were replaced by digital creatures in some cases, some scenes added. Some were to fulfill his vision of the Star Wars saga, others to compensate for the physical damage of the film. He claimed that the original could never be released again for this reason. (Which at the time was probably true, though with ever advancing technology, ‘ever’ is probably incorrect.) But it put the story in the forefront of people’s minds so they were ready for the prequels, and th e backstory of Obi-Wan and Anakin.
The Backstory of the Star Wars Saga Characters
Lucas knew the basic background of his characters to some extent from the start. It wasn’t until Empire that he decided Vader was Anakin, and Leia was the sister. Like most stories, it organically worked itself out, growing and changing with each draft. It had to keep true to the originals while still adapting to minor variations. It also needed the technology to do so, and for that we had to wait decades. Computer graphics make it far easier and safer to meld modeling and acting than, say, building a set like Otoh Gunga underwater, or worse, filming on a volcano!
Many side bits of the story were trimmed away, still considered official yet they would’ve detracted from the center point of the films. Things like Padme’s family and the founding of the rebellion were set aside to focus on Anakin Skywalker’s fall.
Lucas had originally concieved of 3 movies about the clone wars, plus movies on Anakin’s fall and a single prequel before that of his boyhood. This was shrunk to his boyhood, the start of the clone wars, and the end with his fall.
Obi-Wan, for instance, was originally to be the Master throughout. This was changed to add in Qui-Gon, as far too much left Obi-Wan alone with no one to interact with. This intial story revolves around the queen’s need to save her people. The Jedi pick up Jar Jar and he inadvertantly gives her critical information. Young Aankin, a slave boy, the eventual Vader, helps them escape being stuck due to a damaged ship, and is freed in turn. Meanwhile the Senate won’t help and the Senator Palpatine, had predicted it, and ends up Chancellor.
Interesting thing about Palpatine for those who read the novelizations and such: it happens to be the name of the Emperor. See: the Return of the Jedi novelization by James Kahn.
The next story, Attack of the Clones, finally reveals Anakin and Obi-Wan as master and apprentice, how Anakin was married against the Jedi code (which heretorfore had not been known to ban families). and how the war itself broke out. It was a long awaited moment, as Obi-Wan first mentioned the Clone Wars in the first released movie, episode 4.
Revenge of the Sith of course details the end of the Clone Wars, as well as Anakin’s fall to the Dark Side and how Luke and Leia end up separated, as well as what became of their mother. This story had changed since Return of the Jedi, as evidenced in the Return of the Jedi novelization. Many fans were thrilled at the return of Darth Vader, but in truth the story was a tragedy.
The story had now come full circle. And it is truly impressive how it well movies made decades a part synced perfectly. Looking at Alec Guinness as Obi-Wan in episode 4 A New Hope, it’s easy to imagine him remembering what he witnessed as the young Obi-Wan played by Ewan McGregor. It’s easy to imagine Vader, looking back and forth between his son and the Emperor, reliving the moment he chose between Mace Windu and Palpatine, thinking it would save his wife.
George Lucas never stopped using Star Wars to push the envelope. Each story reflects on the others, yet is different. And each pushed movie and storytelling technology in new ways
His attempts to push the tech branched into all areas, influencing video games, computer graphics, animation. Initially,
in order to protect this legacy, it was written in his will there would be no new Star Wars movies when he was gone. While he had vague ideas what he might like to do, he had accepted that he’d never get around to it. There were other ideas to explore, for instance, an idea for a series about young Leia, and another about a young Boba Fett were considered. However, it would’ve till been extremely expensive.
George Lucas has stated clearly that the story was about the children, the grandchildren and great grandchildren. This indicates acceptance that he was fine with the story the expanded universe made, as he didn’t intend to continue it. He had ultimate veto in those stories when they were made. He has also stated that his consultation was not welcome after he sold to Disney, they did not use his story treatments and the story went in a direction that he wouldn’t have taken it.
This is no doubt due to the fact that he always pushed the frontier of both storytelling and technology. He dared to do what was new, things that hadn’t been done before, to find out if it would work. After all, if you never do a new story, how will you no
Sources;
- Making of Star Wars by JW Rinzler
- Making of The Empire Strikes Back by JW Rinzler
- Making of Return of the Jedi by JW Rinzler
- Star Wars Archives1999–2005 (Prequels) by Paul Duncan (2025)
- George Lucas Close Up the Making of his Movies by Chris Salewicz
- Lucasfilm Fan Club issue 17 : George Lucas the Future of Star Wars interview by Dan Madsen
- Star Wars Insider 26 George Lucas Preparing the Star Wars Prequels, Transcript of Star Wars Q & A from the Second Star Wars Summit April 20 1995 at Skywalker Ranch Transcribed and Graphed by Allan Kausch
