But unfortunately for Lucas, most studio executives failed to see the potential in the Star Wars concept; Lucas' plans for the movie in 1973 were rather hazy, and both United Artists and Universal passed on the project due to budgetary concerns.
When he was unable to obtain the rights, he set out to write an original space adventure that would eventually become Star Wars. Despite his success with his previous film, all but one studio turned Star Wars down.
Ultimately, Disney rejected a set of treatment scripts written by Lucas, with then-Disney CEO Bob Iger acknowledging a few years later that the series' creator was left 'betrayed' by the studio, per Insider.
Between running Lucasfilm, an effects company Industrial Light and Magic (ILM), self-financing the future Star Wars installments to retain creative control, and ensuring that The Empire Strikes Back would be made properly, Lucas knew that he wouldn't be able to give the film the attention it needed.
On December 18, 2012, Lucasfilm Ltd. converted from a corporation to a limited liability company (LLC), changing its name to Lucasfilm Ltd. LLC in the process. On December 21, 2012, Disney completed the acquisition and Lucasfilm became a wholly owned subsidiary of Disney.
Disney acquired “Toy Story” creator Pixar in 2006 for $7.4 billion. The company became the owner of the “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones” franchises following the purchase of Lucasfilm in 2012. In August 2009, Disney bought Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion.
At Disney's Hollywood Studios, Galaxy's Edge is located in the southwest portion of the park, with two entries from Grand Avenue and Toy Story Land. Galaxy's Edge replaced the majority of the park's former Streets of America area, including the Lights, Motors, Action!
Speaking to the New York Times, Lucas said, “I'm doing this so that the films will have a longer life, so that more fans and people can enjoy them in the future.” He said he believed that Disney was the right company to sell the company to, as they had both the resources and the expertise to continue and expand the ...
While the sale meant that George gave up all creative rights to Star Wars projects, he still makes a good deal of money off of the Disney stock he gained from the Lucasfilm sale. Per the Dork Side of the Force, George was the second-largest non-institutional holder of Disney stock, as of 2021.
After selling Lucasfilm, Lucas served as a creative consultant on the first film in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, The Force Awakens, formally giving over the directing baton to J.J. Abrams, who directed the first and third movies of the sequel era.
But unfortunately for Lucas, most studio executives failed to see the potential in the Star Wars concept; Lucas' plans for the movie in 1973 were rather hazy, and both United Artists and Universal passed on the project due to budgetary concerns.
Jonah Peretti (right) turned down Bob Iger (left) in a bid for Disney to buy BuzzFeed in 2013. A decade ago, BuzzFeed president Jon Steinberg reportedly got on his knees to beg its founder, Jonah Peretti, to accept a $650 million buyout deal from Disney.
And in Disney CEO Bob Iger's memoir The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company, he reveals that Lucas felt upset and betrayed when he was informed that the House of Mouse would be going in a different direction with his franchise.
Samuel L.
The prolific actor is worth a whopping US$250 million and can earn up to US$20 million per film. He has raked in a crazy amount of money thanks to his work with Star Wars, Marvel and The Incredibles (all of which are owned by Disney). Did you know that Jackson is also the highest-grossing actor of all time?
Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy has said the three new Star Wars films are "pretty far along" in development, so we will likely see them coming soon. New Jedi Order is scheduled for a 2027 release, but it's simply too soon to start the franchise in movies again.
He founded Lucasfilm, his production company, in 1971 and built his fortune through his movies and their merchandise. The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art opened in Los Angeles in 2021 and is entirely funded by Lucas and his wife, Mellody Hobson.
Kathleen Kennedy is the president of Lucasfilm and is in charge of the Star Wars franchise. Here is her history and why George Lucas picked her.
Related: How George Lucas and Steven Spielberg Saved Disney
Then, in 2012, Lucas and The Walt Disney Company shocked everyone when then-CEO Bob Iger announced that Disney was buying Lucasfilm, Ltd. in a $4 billion deal.
Analysis of 39 sets of financial statements shows that Disney spent total of $2.0 billion (£1.7 billion) on making its five Star Wars films which generated $1.3 billion of profits after factoring in a total of $343.9 million (£287.9 million) of reimbursements.
The most recent sequel trilogy and spin-off films and series came after Lucas sold the rights to the Star Wars franchise to Disney for $4 billion in cash and stock, although those 37 million shares over the years have grown to a value of $7.4 billion.
Back on October 30, 2012, the Walt Disney Company made a bold leap into the world of fantasy movies with its surprise announcement that it was acquiring Lucasfilm, home of the immensely successful Star Wars brands, from its founder, George Lucas, for $4.05 billion, split evenly between stock and cash.
Disney is closing its Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser experience at Walt Disney World Resort later this year, the company announced Thursday. The vacation experience, which launched in March 2022 and provided guests with an immersive two-night adventure to a galaxy far, far away, will embark on its "final voyage" Sept.
After spending hundreds of millions of dollars to build an immersive “Star Wars”-themed hotel at Walt Disney World, Disney said on Thursday that, amid sweeping corporate cost-cutting, it would close the underperforming attraction in September, only about 18 months after it opened.
Dissatisfied with the original theatrical cuts of the original Star Wars film, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi, creator George Lucas altered the films in ways that were ostensibly not initially possible, primarily due to limitations of time, budget, and technology.