Without Perseverance, We Wouldn’t Have Star Wars
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What Happened
Are you excited to see Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens yet? If so, you’re not alone. The movie sold $50 million worth of tickets before it opened Dec. 17—crushing the old record. Many think The Force Awakens could be the biggest movie ever.
Even then, it’ll be in the shadow of the Star Wars movie that started it all: Star Wars IV: A New Hope. Released in 1977, A New Hope (simply called Star Wars by folks old enough to have seen it in theaters) became the world’s first real blockbuster. It made $461 million in North America. That’s nearly $1.5 billion in today’s dollars. Only one movie—Gone With the Wind—has made more.
That’s just the beginning: Star Wars launched a whole universe of products—from toys to video games to theme park rides to Christmas specials. More people probably could tell you who Darth Vader is than who the president of the United States is.
Star Wars, scholars say, has become a uniquely American myth. It’s hard to believe that it almost wasn’t made.
Its creator, George Lucas, had just directed a successful film called American Graffiti, but couldn’t get anyone interested in his new space adventure. Universal Pictures turned it down because the concept was “a little strange.” Disney (who now owns the franchise) turned it down, too. However, Lucas didn’t stop asking, and 20th Century Fox finally said OK—provided Lucas keep the budget down.
Lucas didn’t. His budget of $8 million eventually ballooned to $10 million. The process of filming was so draining that, during the middle of it, Lucas was diagnosed with hypertension and exhaustion and told to cut back. By the time it was released, no one thought the little movie was going to be particularly successful. In fact, 20th Century Fox essentially had to twist the arms of theaters to show it.
When critics saw the thing, many of them didn’t like it much. “O dull new world!” New York Magazine said. The New Republic thought its imagination and special effects were “unexceptional.” Pauline Kael from The New Yorker called it “exhausting.” It was a strange beginning for one of the most influential movies of all time.
Talk About It
• Have you seen any of the Star Wars movies? If so, which one is your favorite? Why? If you’ve seen the new one, what did you think of it?
• George Lucas was rejected and disappointed a lot on his way to making Star Wars, but he never quit. When have you had to deal with rejection? How did you handle it?
• Lucas had to stay true to his vision. As Christians, it’s up to us to stay true to our faith—to hold firm to our beliefs and principles, though it’s sometimes difficult. Have you ever found it hard to be a Christian? When? What’s the toughest thing about it? How do you deal with those difficulties?
• It’s funny to hear what people thought of Star Wars when it was first released, but it’s happened to all of us. We’ve all been wrong about something or someone, either too optimistic over overly cynical. What have you been wrong about? How hard is it to admit you were wrong afterward?
What the Bible Says
“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him” (James 1:12).
“More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (Rom. 5:3-5).
Paul Asay has written for Time, The Washington Post and Christianity Today. He writes about culture for Plugged In and has published several books, including his newest, Burning Bush 2.0 (Abingdon), available now. He lives in Colorado Springs. Check out his entertainment blog at Patheos.com/Blogs/WatchingGod or follow him on Twitter @AsayPaul.
