The enormous Star Wars twist at the end of 1980 sequel Empire Strikes Back is etched not just in Star Wars history, but in the history of the best movies of all time. George Lucas kept his ideas hidden at the time, and he thinks he could still hold on to that secret today.
It’s much harder for new movies to keep secrets in the 21st century than it was back in the late 1970s. Everyone has a camera in their pocket now, and social media is always buzzing to know what’s happening behind the scenes on the biggest blockbusters. The new Star Wars movies will be protected by high-level security.
Lucas, though, told StarWars.com that his method for keeping the reveal that Darth Vader is Luke Skywalker‘s father a secret was the oldest trick in the books. He simply didn’t tell anybody.
He said: “The thing about it is I didn’t tell anybody about it. And it wasn’t in any of the scripts. It wasn’t even in the story treatments. I kept that aspect of it secret and I was the only one that knew about it. And it really wasn’t until the day we shot that we told Mark [Hamill] so he could react appropriately.”
Hamill said he was told by director Irvin Kershner that “if it leaks, we’ll know it’s you” as only Hamill, Lucas, and Kershner knew at that time. The circle later expanded to include James Earl Jones and several members of the sound team who were present when the pivotal line was recorded.
Lucas added: “There were very, very few people who knew about it until it was shown for the first time. By the end, with the actors, about 12 people knew what that line was.”
Lucas then said it’s “very hard to have surprises” in modern movies because of the internet and said that, actually, he wasn’t sure whether the secret would’ve stayed hidden today. Way to contradict yourself quicker than a hyperdrive, George.
He should perhaps have held on to his optimism, though. After all, James Bond sequel No Time to Die managed to keep its shocking final moment under wraps just two years ago. It can be done, but you definitely have to work much harder than just relying on taciturn sound mixers to keep their mouths shut.
We’ve got plenty of great Star Wars material here at The Digital Fix, including a guide to the Star Wars movies in order, the Skywalker family tree, and detailed information on the upcoming Ahsoka release date.
You can also find out who Dave Filoni thinks is the greatest Jedi and the one lightsaber fight rule you definitely missed. Meanwhile, we’ve explained why we love everything Star Wars and delved into why the new Star Wars movie needs John Boeyega.