Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back: The 40th Anniversary Special explores the myths, legends, and reality behind the critical and box-office smash hit that has been a fan-favorite since its release in 1980. Learn how iconic sequences, such as the battle of Hoth, the Millennium Falcon’s pursuit through the asteroid field, and Luke Skywalker’s epic duel with Darth Vader in Cloud City, were brought from script to screen. Featuring on-set interviews with the cast and crew, fan facts, production photos, and original concept art, this official special edition goes in depth to explore the classic movie.
STAR WARSTM THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK
Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back: 40th Anniversary Special Edition
THE MYTH GROWS…
The Empire Strikes Back By Numbers
A Partial List of Costs
A NEW HOPE RECAP • Blending elements from the fantastic imaginary he had grown up with, a promising young director, George Lucas, came up with the idea for a long, complex saga somewhere between fantasy and science-fiction. Released as a self-contained film with an evocative title, Star Wars would soon become a pop-culture phenomenon and a huge box-office hit, which paved the way for George Lucas to follow suit and let the legend unfold. The story Lucas had come up with, rife with knights, princesses, pirates and an evil despot, slaked worldwide audiences’ thirst for adventure. But evidently they still wanted more.
THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK • Like many other great stories, The Empire Strikes Back is based on a three-act structure. Despite the fact that it is the second film in a trilogy, the screenplay—which experienced a troubled production—is exquisitely satisfying even on its own. Science-fiction author and screenwriter Leigh Brackett began work on the script, which, following her death in 1978, was completed by Lawrence Kasdan, based on an outline by George Lucas.
THE SAGA BEGINS • It was August 1977, and about two months after its premiere Star Wars was still number one at the box office. Lucasfilm was beginning negotiations with Fox for the sequel, with the aim to get back the rights to the characters and limit the company’s creative control over the filmmaking process. The agreement would be signed at the end of September, giving George Lucas the final cut of the film and offering his company a better profit sharing deal. Meanwhile, trying to rebuild Industrilal Light & Magic—which closed down upon the release of the first film—Lucas was hiring back essential collaborators such as artist Ralph McQuarrie and director of visual effects photography Dennis Muren, among others. Everything was ready, but what was the story they would tell?
HOTH • With temperatures as low as -60°C during the nights and landscapes constantly buried under ice and snow, this is one of the most inhospitable planets of the galaxy. The almost unlivable climate is caused by Hoth’s great distance from the primary sun of the system and also by its wide elliptical orbit—as a result, it takes the planet 526 standard days to round that sun. Intense winds and snowstorms constantly blow the frozen surface of Hoth, shaping the landscape and amplifying the extreme cold. Even droids, speeders, and transports have a tough life here. While Hoth’s hostile environment might dissuade visitors and explorers, it makes the planet a very good place to hide, as the Rebellion knows well. But even Hoth isn’t remote enough to elude the Empire’s probe droids and keep the Echo Base safe.
LIFE ON HOTH • Despite the harsh conditions and scant vegetation, Hoth is home at least to two prominent indigenous species: the tauntaun, a lizard-like animal, and the wampa, a predatory creature at the top of the food chain. To survive on Hoth, both creatures have evolved to withstand the perilous climate: tauntauns rest overnight as the nighttime would be deadly otherwise; wampas have developed a...