Jedi Knights, sparkly androids and epic space battles. Star Wars was a before and after for the film and entertainment industry, wrapping the monomyth in an amazing carousel of special effects. Which has a double merit, given that George Lucas's own original drafts were originally set in the 33rd century, the most iconic characters were completely redrawn and, in a thinly disguised way, the plot was too inspired by Akira Kurosawa's The Hidden Fortress . But let's go in parts.
Before the script Star Wars Lucas made numerous drafts. In fact, technically it wasn't until the second, titled The Adventures of the Starkiller, that the project would be channeled a little towards the history that we know today. And even in it we can see enormous differences with the final result. The key to this and how the flood of influences from samurai films and science fiction works for Ralph McQuarriewho developed the illustrations and conceptual designs.
As a reference, and so that we more or less situate ourselves within the creative process, the draft The Adventures of the Starkiller It was made in 1974, no less than three years before the film was released. But starting from the starting point, we have to go to the previous year, with a premise condensed on two sheets of paper titled Journal of the Whills, Part I. A plot starring a Jedi-bendu named Mace Windy that starts more or less like this:.
“This is the story of Mace Windy, a revered Jedi-bendu of Ophuchi, as told to us by CJ Thorpe, Padawaan apprentice of the famous Jedi.”
Needless to say, when George Lucas began to shape The Phantom Menace (the Episode I of his saga) rescued lots of ideas from that Journal of the Whills, Part I. Others, however, reached the synopses of the project that will end up being Star Wars. Because that Thorpe, Mace Windy's padawan, was called in that C2 project, “Chuiee Two Thorpe”. And this is where things really spread out.
A long time ago, in a distant draft…
Annikin Starkiller and her master Luke Skywalker
There is a bridge between Journal of the Whills, Part I and what will become the first rough draft of Star Wars: Since the spring of 1973, George Lucas tried to find a partner to capture his vision of what should be a great space odyssey, more or less proposing a plot to studios like United Artists, or Universal, without any luck. And so it was until in July 20th Century Fox accepted the creation of a draft, with no guarantee that it would become a film.
According to later statements by George Lucas, Alan Ladd, Jr., the Fox executive who reached out to him, was not so interested in the project, but rather in what he himself could do as a filmmaker.
“[Ladd] “He invested in me, but not in the film.”
George Lucas in Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy
The original story of Star WarsIn fact, it has many elements that would be integrated in very different ways around the saga: the Jedi master lived on the fourth moon of the planet Utapau. Kane Starkiller and his sons Deak and Annikin. The three decided to exile themselves from the Empire until they were found by a Sith, who ended up murdering Deak.
After exacting his revenge, and discovered in the eyes of the Empire, Kane and his last son head to their home planet where they seek help and reunite with an old friend and fellow Jedi named Luke Skywalkerwhom he requests to train his Annikin and make him his padawan.
Stormtroopers with lightsabers?
In this version, the characters of Princess Leia or Han Solo already exist, although they are very different from those who will end up appearing on screen. The first has a broader role than in Star Wars (although she ends up being held by a very powerful General Darth Vader, without a mask and any type of mystical power), while the second is from the Ureallian extraterrestrial race. Along with them, C-3PO and R2-D2, two androids who will be decisive for the fate of the Galaxy.
In the end it is only a few strokes about the changes introduced in the final version. However, those ideas were not wasted: in 2013 the publisher Dark Horse published the original draft of the story in comic format and under the new Legends label under the name The Star Wars. That said, there was still a lot to redo.
From the adventures of Luke Starkiller to Star Wars
These spaceships look like something out of Episode I
From mid-1974 to early 1975, George Lucas would rethink the premise of the first draft several times, rewriting it and recycling ideas until it evolved into Adventures of the Starkiller, Episode I: The Star Wars. Technically, its name was Adventures of the Starkiller as taken from the Journal of the Whills, Saga I: The Star Wars. And yes, many of his ideas will end up emerging in the prequel trilogy.
The biggest difference is that in Adventures of the Starkiller George Lucas himself will not only rely on the text, he will have a broader and more defined vision of his ideas through the art of Ralph McQuarrie.
Although, as you will see from its introductory text, the most fascinating of all is that this curious mixture of ideas that takes us to Star Wars is actually a not so misguided summary of what will be The Phantom Menace he Attack of the Clones, Revenge of the Sith and until Clone Wars.
The Galactic Republic is dead. Ruthless merchant barons, driven by greed and lust for power, have replaced enlightenment with oppression and “rule by the people” with the first Galactic Empire.
Until the tragic Holy Rebellion of “06,” Ashla's respected Bendi Jedi were the most powerful warriors in the Universe. For one hundred thousand years, generations of Bendu Jedi knights learned the ways of the mysterious Force and acted as guardians of peace and justice in the Republic.
Now these legendary warriors are practically extinct. One by one they have been hunted down and destroyed by a fierce rival sect of mercenary warriors: the Sith black knights.
Han Solo before he was Harrison Ford
The curious thing is that the second half of the opening intro already shows us that intermediate step between the original draft and what will end up being Star Wars: A New Hope. Knowing that there will still be a couple more drafts to do.
It is a period of civil wars. The Empire is crumbling into lawless barbarism on millions of worlds in the galaxy. From the celestial equator to the farthest reaches of the Great Rift, seventy small solar systems have joined together in a common war against the tyranny of the Empire.
Under the command of a powerful Jedi warrior known as the Starkiller, the Rebel Alliance has won a crushing victory over the deadly Imperial Starfleet. The Empire knows that one more defeat will bring a thousand more solar systems into rebellion, and Imperial control of the Outlands could be lost forever…
In Adventures of the Starkiller Huge giant steps were taken towards concepts that were coined in the 1977 film: the Force is referred to as such, the Droids serve as a common thread and the main characters were much more aligned (although with enormous changes) with respect to to what will be shown in Star Wars.
What's more, a MacGuffin was introduced around the Kiber crystal that will eventually be integrated into the canon like the kyber crystals. And it doesn't end there, since George Lucas considered Skywalker being a woman. Something that, paradoxically, we would see long after his legacy and contribution to the saga ended.
The success of Star Wars: beyond the power of the script
The good reception received by American Graffiti, Lucas's previous film, became the best endorsement for the project and, in terms of the investment in his film, a budget of 8.25 million dollars at the time. An atrocity.
On the other hand, Lucas knew that the effects to shape his vision had not yet been invented, so in 1975, between revisions of his script, he founded the historic Industrial Light & Magic (ILM). And even with the roles in hand and the technology being created, filming was an adventure in itself: the storm hit several sets located in key locations and the production pace was crazy.
It would be unfair to say that Star Wars It is what it is only because of George Lucas' scripts. The phenomenon is an accumulation of influences and, at the same time, an authentic demonstration of the power of the seventh art through all the senses. From the visual riot, to the avant-garde of special effects, to John Williams' legendary Soundtrack.
Many, many original ideas were lost along the way. Some will end up being accommodated in the original trilogy; Others will remain stored in an archive for decades until it was released in 1999. The Phantom Menace and its consequences and it is impossible to measure what was lost in the process.
What's more: after the implementation of the new canon after the acquisition of Disney, many of the works born as a result of the phenomenon, including books or video games, were relegated to the Legends of Star Wars. But one thing is clear: despite the blatant influences of Dune, Kurosawa's cinema or the Flash Gordon comics, that space opera was destined to make history. And boy did he do it!
In VidaExtra | George Lucas abandoned him in the desert, the Mandalorian fought him and you can buy a piece of the most famous Star Wars skeleton