Everyone knows about Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, Queen Amidala, Princess Leia, R2D2, Obi-Wan Kenobi and the other characters of the popular movie trilogy by George Lucas, Star Wars. It was first released in 1977 and it is still enjoying its popularity until now. TV series, books, video games and toys based on the movie were also released. Even if you are a fanatic, there might be some Star Wars facts that you may not know about. Get to know your favorite movie better through this list.
10. Opening Crawl
If you have watched any of the Star Wars films, you will be familiar with the opening crawl that says: “A long long time ago, in a galaxy far far away…” All the installments of the movie had this opening crawl written, followed by the Star Wars logo and a brief story about the film. However, did you know that the famous line was not originally written that way? Instead, George Lucas wrote: “A long long time ago, in the not-too-distant future…” You may be confused on what it actually means. You are not alone. One of his colleagues told him about this. He edited the line and the famous opening crawl was born. This is one of the Star Wars facts that you may have just heard of now.
9. Han Solo
Han Solo is one of the most popular characters in the movie. Solo is second on IGN’s list of Star Wars greatest characters of all time, number 15 on Fandomania.com’s 100 Greatest Fictional Characters and was number 4 on Empire Magazine’s greatest movie characters of all time. But did you know that Harrison Ford was not the first pick for this role? It was originally offered to Jeff Goldblum who had to turn down the role because he decided to accept a role in the movie, Annie Hall. Other actors were also considered for the role of Han Solo including Kurt Russell, Nick Nolte, Christopher Walken, Al Pacino and Perry King.
8. R2D2 Role
R2D2 is a famous droid in the movie. It also appeared on all installments of the film. You may know by now that this character is played by a midget. But did you know that the role was supposed to be played by a dwarf? Three dwarves tried for the role but they could not take the heat when wearing the costume. It was even fatal to one of them. Good thing that everything went fine and a midget was able to play the role without a problem.
7. Origin of R2D2
Another fact that you may not know about this droid is the origin of its name. When watching behind the scenes from movies, you may hear the director say the lines “reel 2, dialogue 2, and action!” This is where the name of R2D2 was taken. Now that’s another bit of information to add on your Star Wars knowledge.
6. Millennium Falcon Design
Of course you know that this is the spacecraft of Han Solo and Chewbacca. But did you know that its original design had a resemblance to a fictional spacecraft of the TV series Space: 1999 called the Eagle Transporter. The design was modified and used for the Tantive IV, which was the spaceship of Princess Leia. So what about the design of Millennium Falcon? A new design was made, which was inspired by the shape of a hamburger. The cockpit part of the spacecraft is supposed to be an olive on the side of the burger. That’s a yum fact that might have made you say Oh!
5. Origin of Ewok
Ewoks are characters in the movie that look like teddy bears. They live in the forest moon of Endor and allied with the rebels to fight against the evil forces. The fictional place of Endor was actually the Redwood Forest in real life. The Native American tribe called Miwok inhabited the place. This is where George Lucas got the name Ewok.
4. Inspiration for Chewbacca
Chewbacca is the gentle, hairy giant, which became the partner of Han Solo. When Solo was serving the Imperial Navy, he was ordered to kill Chewbacca. He refused to do so that is why he was taken out of the service. But this is where their partnership started. Chewbacca was dubbed as one of the most popular sidekicks of all time. But where did George Lucas get the inspiration to create the character of Chewbacca? It’s from his dog Indiana. While his dog was sitting on his car, the idea formed on his mind about this character that looks like a dog, which will serve as the co-pilot of a human character in the movie. You may be wondering why it was named Chewbacca when it is too far from the dog’s name Indiana. The name was derived from the Russian word собака which means dog. The dog’s name was also the inspiration for Indiana Jones, which is another hit film made by George Lucas.
3. Princess Leia
Princess Leia is one of the main characters of the story. She is the birth daughter of Anakin Skywalker or Darth Vader and Queen Amidala. She is also the twin sister of Luke Skywalker, though they did not know it at the start. She was adopted by Bail Organa, the head of the royal family in Alderaan. She then married Han Solo and had three children namely Jacen, Jaina and Anakin. The talented and beautiful Carrie Fisher played the role of Princess Leia. But did you know that another award winning actress auditioned for the role but failed? It’s Sissy Spacek! She is well known for her portrayal of Carrie White for the movie Carrie. Other actresses that were considered for the role were Diana Ross, Jane Fonda and Meryl Streep.
2. Star Wars Release Date
You may have missed this simple fact but come to think of it, the release of every Star Wars movie in the US is always on the month of May. And not only that, it is shown a week after George Lucas’s birthday, which is May 14.
1. Actors for Darth Vader
While it usually takes one person to play a character in the movie, several actors portrayed the role of Darth Vader in the film. Sebastian Shaw played as the unmasked Darth Vader while David Browse played the character with the mask. However, Bob Anderson played the part on extreme fight scenes since he was a professional stunt performer.
Now that you know about these Star Wars facts, share them with your friends and wow them with the information that you learned. They will be impressed on how well you know about the movie.
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