The Hidden History of Star Wars Part II

The Hidden History of Star Wars Part II
"George’s Disaster"

Last time we discussed how George Lucas was able to convince a studio to give him eight-million dollars to let him film his “Science Fiction Movie”. Lucas had struggled in writing the film and he was about to hit some more roadblocks.

It was March 1976 when Lucas started filming “Star Wars” and only nine months before the film was suppose to release. Lucas had just casted a bunch of unknown actors to play his characters (which went against the studio’s wishes). He even gave the part of Han Solo to Harrison Ford instead of some high profile actors who auditioned for the role including Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell, Christopher Walken, Nick Nolte, and one Billy Dee Williams.

Ford and the other actors found the scripts confusing at first. Ford once said , "George, you can type this shit, but you can't say it!" The cast and crew had a hard time seeing Lucas’ vision for the film and many did not believe the project would be successful. 

The Original Jabba

When giving direction to actors George would constantly use the phrases “Faster” and “More intense” over and over again but elsewise would rarely talk to the actors. Lucas also clashed with the cinematographer and the studio. He constantly seemed depressed on set and was even diagnosed with hypertension. 

The movie was plagued with delays and the release date was pushed back to the summer of 

Han & Jenny

1977. Lucas had to create his own visual effects company (ILM) after finding out that FOX’s had been shut down. Lucas brought together a small team of college students who basically worked out of a basement and who were constantly high and unfocussed. They spent half of their budget on four shots that Lucas found unacceptable.  It was up to Lucas to inspire them by showing them cuts of old war movies with dogfights.

Luke's Friends

When the first cut of the film came out, Lucas saw that it was a disaster. 40% of the film would need to be redone so he went to FOX for more money. He fired his editor and tasked his wife to recut the film. Scenes were thrown out, plotlines were revamped and reshoots were scheduled (though this would prove difficult as Mark Hamill had been in a car accident, which scarred his face.)

Luke's Poncho

A few things found in the first cut of the film included:

-Luke going to the Tosche Station to pick up some power converters and “waste time with his friends”
-Luke’s friends Deak, Windy, Camie, Fisher and Biggs
-Luke saying goodbye to Biggs
-Han talks to Jabba (a fat human)
-Han Solo has a girlfriend named Jenny
-Luke's Poncho was featured in much of the original cut of the film

Luke & Biggs on Tatooine

When Lucas finally finished the film he screened it for FOX, bringing one man to tears. “This is the greatest film I’ve ever seen,” said Gareth Wigan. Lucas was dumbfounded; he had never gained approval from any of his bosses before. A few months later the world would see his “Science Fiction Movie."


NEXT TIME: BLOCKBUSTER
Star Wars opens for the world and the world changes forever.