The making of the original Star Wars film, later renamed A New Hope, is one of the most fascinating behind-the-scenes stories in cinema. Plagued by production problems at every turn and deemed a failure before release, it seemed that Star Wars was destined to fail. Against all the odds. A New Hope became one of the most successful movies ever made, kicked off the Star Wars original trilogy, inspired a generation of filmmakers, and launched a franchise that is still telling new stories almost five decades later.

Because of Star Wars' success and continuing popularity, there are countless bits of trivia and hidden details about the film's production. Books, cast interviews, documentaries, and deleted scenes all shed light on how Star Wars' first big screen outing became what it is. 15 things about the making of A New Hope are especially fascinating for those unfamiliar with them.

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15 Grand Moff Tarkin Wore Slippers

Even bad guys like to be comfortable

The Star Wars costumes may be iconic, but that doesn't mean they were always comfortable for the actors. Grand Moff Tarkin actor Peter Cushing found his boots so uncomfortable that he asked to wear slippers whenever they didn't appear on-screen. It's hilarious to imagine such an intimidating villain making threats and ordering the destruction of planets in the comfort of his slippers.

14 Star Wars Almost Killed George Lucas

Directing a legendary movie is stressful work

George Lucas poured his heart and soul into the making of Star Wars, which nearly cost him his life. Lucas was so stressed from everything going wrong with the production that he experienced severe chest pain and had to go to a local hospital. While not a heart attack, Lucas was exhibiting signs of hypertension and extreme stress, and he was warned that it could get much worse if he didn't reduce his stress levels. Since this was not an option for Lucas, who was determined to finish the film, it's a miracle that he made it to the end of post-production.

13 George Lucas Didn’t Attend The Premiere

He went on vacation instead

The Star Wars premiere in May 1977 became a legendary success, but Lucas was not present. After nearly dying of stress and believing the film would fail, Lucas instead went on vacation to Hawaii with his friend and fellow filmmaker Steven Spielberg. Much to his surprise, however, he received a call telling him to turn on the news, which is how he learned Star Wars had become a massive hit. The movie was the highest-grossing film of all time, kicking off a franchise that would continue for several decades.

12 Harrison Ford Wasn’t Supposed To Be Han Solo

Lucas initially wanted a fresh face in the role

It's hard to imagine anyone but Harrison Ford playing Han Solo in A New Hope, but that's exactly what Lucas did. He wanted the Star Wars characters to be played by fresh, relatively unknown actors, and Ford had already starred in Lucas' previous film American Graffiti. However, Ford helped read lines for actors auditioning for Han Solo, and everyone agreed that he did the best job.

11 Mark Hamill Popped A Blood Vessel From Holding His Breath

He hadn't quite mastered the Force yet

While the characters may have survived A New Hope's trash compactor scene, not all the actors walked away unscathed. While filming the moment Luke Skywalker gets pulled underwater by a monster, Mark Hamill held his breath so long that he popped a blood vessel in his eye. He wanted to look as red-faced and strangled as possible, and while it was effective, it was likely not something he aimed to repeat.

10 Three Actors Played Wedge Antilles

Recasting usually happens between films

Characters are sometimes recast between films, but it's fascinating when it happens in the same movie. Wedge Antilles was originally played by Colin Higgins, appearing next to Luke Skywalker during the rebel briefing on the Death Star. However, Higgins was a TV actor and used to having more time to memorize lines, so after a frustrating day of shooting, he was fired from the production. Denis Lawson took over for all of Wedge's remaining scenes and continued playing the character in every subsequent film appearance. Higgins and Lawson were both overdubbed by David Ankrum in the final cut.

9 Most Of The Budget Was Wasted On A Few Special Effects Shots

As if Lucas didn't have enough to worry about

One of the biggest contributors to Lucas' extreme stress levels was the budget, and the special effects team didn't help. After completing filming overseas, Lucas visited ILM and discovered that they had spent $1 million on seven special effects shots, only one of which he found acceptable. Lucas took a more direct role in overseeing the visual effects from then on, and the team produced groundbreaking work that defied expectations.

8 The First Cut Of Star Wars Was “Unwatchable”

A far cry from the version that changed film history

The final cut of A New Hope may be a masterpiece, but Lucas' first crack at the film was apparently a disaster. Lucas screened the first cut for his friends and colleagues, and everyone except Steven Spielberg thought it was terrible. He saw the potential in Lucas' movie and believed it would be successful. Spielberg was proven right when the final edit was an exciting summer blockbuster that entertained and captured the imagination of audiences.

7 Several Studios Rejected Star Wars

A decision they likely regret

Considering how successful Star Wars became, it's hard to believe anyone in their right mind would have turned it down. However, several studios rejected Lucas' pitch for Star Wars, including Universal, United Artists, and Disney. 20th Century Fox finally agreed to fund the film, and its unprecedented success proved wrong every studio who thought it wouldn't work.

6 The Word “Sith” Was Only Mentioned In A Deleted Scene

The Jedi's ancient enemy was almost named onscreen from the beginning

Darth Vader was always known as the Dark Lord of the Sith, but the Sith weren't named onscreen until the Star Wars prequel trilogy. However, a rare deleted scene from A New Hope shows one of the Imperials on Tarkin's council referring to Vader as "This Sith Lord sent by the Emperor..." The scene was eventually shown at Star Wars Celebration 2017.

5 Mark Hamill & Carrie Fischer Had To Do Their Own Stunts

Courtesy of the small budget

Another downside to A New Hope's low budget was that the crew couldn't afford stunt performers for some scenes. The most famous example is when Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia swing across a chasm on the Death Star to escape stormtroopers, a stunt the actors had to do themselves. The crew assured them it would be safe and hoped for the best as the two grabbed each other and jumped.

4 Harrison Ford Had An Affair With Carrie Fisher During Filming

A romance on and off-camera

Han Solo and Princess Leia's romance may have developed in The Empire Strikes Back, but the actors had already taken things to the next level during A New Hope. In her 2016 memoir The Princess Diarist, Carrie Fisher revealed that she had an affair with Harrison Ford, calling it "... Han and Leia during the week, and Carrie and Harrison during the weekend." Since Ford was married with two kids at the time and 14 years older than Fisher, it's impressive that they kept the affair out of the public eye for over 40 years.

3 Ben Burtt Combined Different Animals To Make Chewbacca’s Voice

Lightsabers weren't the only impressive sound effect

Ben Burt is credited with some of Star Wars' most iconic sound effects, including the instantly recognizable hum of a lightsaber. He also created Chewbacca's Wookiee growls by mixing various animal sounds such as a lion, a badger, a walrus, a seal, and four bears. Burtt deserves praise for seamlessly combining so many creatures to create a voice that matched Chewbacca so perfectly.

2 R2-D2 Didn’t Like Sand Either

Like owner, like droid

R2-D2 made surprisingly great time as he traveled across Tatooine, but this wasn't the case behind the scenes. The crew found R2-D2 difficult to work with since sand kept getting caught in his motors as they tried to move him. It proved to be one of the most frustrating problems, one that would persist in subsequent Star Wars movies.

1 Different Cuts Of The Film Had Alternate Dialogue

Some of which made more sense than others

Some of A New Hope's alternate takes made their way into different theaters. One of the most notable examples can be seen during the Death Star battle, with Luke Skywalker saying "Blast it Biggs, where are you?" in one version and "Blast it Wedge, where are you?" in another. C-3PO's line about how to disable the Death Star tractor beam was infamously missing in the theatrical cut, but some fans will swear they heard this line in theaters. It seems to be one of many fun Star Wars moments resulting from the hectic release and making of A New Hope.

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope

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PG

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The film that began the Star Wars franchise, Episode IV - A New Hope tells the story of wistful Force-sensitive Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), who longs to leave his home planet of Tatooine to fight the evil Empire. After inheriting his Jedi father's weapon, a lightsaber, Luke sets off under the tutelage of Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness) with smuggler Han Solo (Harrison Ford) to join the Rebellion and face the evil Darth Vader.

Director

George Lucas

Release Date

May 25, 1977

Studio(s)

Lucasfilm

Distributor(s)

20th Century

Writers

George Lucas

Cast

Mark Hamill , Harrison Ford , Carrie Fisher , Alec Guinness , David Prowse , James Earl Jones , Frank Oz , Anthony Daniels , Kenny Baker , Peter Mayhew , Peter Cushing

Franchise(s)

Star Wars

Budget

$11 Million

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