you people are really making me pull this disused account out of hibernation just to make this PSA: this IS the original theatrical crawl as it was originally seen on release The Empire Strikes Back was NEVER released or marketed as "Episode II" from day one it was always "Episode V"
Correct, though Lucasfilms and Fox avoided calling it Episode V until the film hit theatres, so fans called it Star Wars 2 until it came out. Of course, the Episode number weren't really relevant until the prequels; home video releases only begrudgingly called Star Wars "A New Hope" on official products in the 90's, over a decade after "Episode IV: A NEW HOPE" was appended to the film.
As I recall, even the trailers for the Special Edition in theaters called "A New Hope" "Star Wars". Wasn't until "The Phantom Menace" that "A New Hope" was finally marketed as such
+vonbontee Did you went to the movie premiere in 1980? wow... Did the original release had the "EPISODE V" legend on the title? I thought that "EPISODE V" was added later. Thanks and sorry for my bad english
+Rukazu Hi. The title Episode V was in the original release of Empire. People kind of disagree on why Lucas did this. Some people say he already had a very long draft similar to what it was told on the prequels plus what you can see on Star Wars 1977 and a little more... using the second half of this long story he decided to call this Episode V (maybe even considering the possibility of making the prequels in the future... but nothing too clear). Other people think this is a homage to 40s & 50s "serials": short films of episodic nature that usually end with a cliffhanger that was picked up in the next episode (the original Flash Gordon, 1936 had 13 episodes) sometimes you went to a theater and the serial would begin with the episode V, or VII (maybe the theater didn't have the previous ones or maybe they already show those last week); the serials used to have this style of crawling titles explaining the story cause probably you didn't watch the previous ones; So its a homage to this films that inspired Lucas...
+BoilingHotCoffee It was explained in interviews and marketing at the time, but at least one person I saw it with said out loud, "Episode V???? WHY?" I remember Mark Hamill saying in an interview that this would be the fifth chapter, the sequel would be #6 and then they would be on a break while the first 3 chapters were made, then he would be back for the final trilogy as an older Luke. Those plans have been a source of confusion ever since
"I Can't wait to see Star Wars Part 2!" Guy says. "Shush! It's starting!" Girl says. STAR WARS EPISODE V THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK "Wait, episode 5? then were's episodes 1,2,3, and 4!?!" Both say.
Imagine if one guy behind them says, "Well, we can assume 'Star Wars' was episode one, and I guess the 'Holiday Special' was episode 2, but what happened to 3 and 4?"
A former college professor told me a funny story: He had friends who watched The Empire Strikes Back so many times in theaters, they memorized the opening crawl. During one showing, a tall guy sat in front of them and refused to move. Without seeing the screen, my professor's friends read the crawl out loud. They tall guy in front of them got up and changed seats.
You learn something new every day. I always thought the original trilogy received the "Episode...." during the 1997 re-release since Episode I was in the making. They didn't have the Episode # on the original VHS covers
Apparently 'Episode V' was in the original release of Empire Strikes Back, which is weird because it never appears in the advertising and no-one seemed to care. 'A New Hope' was added in 1981 when it was re-released in cinemas.
Well it’s actually a reference to TV shows Lucas would never find the first episode of. Also, that does NOT mean they had the story all planned for the two first trilogies. And I say _they_ because Lucas had the idea of Star Wars, named most characters and directed the first movie, but he didn’t _make_ Star Wars AT ALL.
@Amazing Spiderman Fan 2002 : Well that’s just the truth. I will expand a bit, but DON’T READ in case you understand French, in which case I can link a video that will explain things much better than I will try to summarize. It’s 50 minutes so no French or English subtitles have been made yet. You’ll have guessed it: I’m French myself so sorry for my English and for typing this on a phone. Having not proofread anything, there probably are several grammar mistakes, sentences that you can’t understand and some typos, thanks to the small keyboard, autocorrect, and my English level. In case you don’t understand French, enjoy this, excuse the length, and just take one second to estimate how much time I spent writing this entire “essay”! Lucas initially dreamed to make a Flash Gordon film, but as he was refused the rights, he did what many people do in his position: copying in his own. It’s kind of how Star Wars was born. Then Lucas, after days of writing, he up with the very first script of the very first Star Wars film. And it was absolute crap! The people he worked with (like 3 very famous directors, including Spielberg, as well as his own cinema teacher Irvin Kershner who directed the best Star Wars film, The Empire Strikes Back)… they all told Lucas his script was bad: too much politics, too many word terms like “Jedi-Bendu”, “Sith”, or weird character names like “Mace Windu” or “Anakin Starkiller” (cough, prequels, cough). He didn’t only take inspiration from Flash Gordon, of course, there were also some Pirate film inspiration, Samurais, Nazi propaganda and war films. And most importantly, Joseph Campbell’s theory of the monomyth: a theory according to which many man-made stories had the same scheme for The Hero’s Journey: a young man who fights to subvert how things are established, guided by an old man’s figure, and had to eventually kill his father, as a bad figure of authority. You can watch TED-ED’s video about The Hero’s Journey to get it better. Instead of focusing on useless political development, Lucas was advised to focus more on the characters like Luke. So many people actually edited the script that it wasn’t even Lucas’ anymore. In the end, he’s still th he only one to get credit for writing the movie. Then with the 6th version of the script, they started recording, which as an absolute mess, with actors like Alec Guinness who hated doing the move (though he still played well, kudos to him). But with some expert editing from his wife Marsia, and clever actor direction from Producer Gary Kurtz (who died recently and no one cared but OH BOI we should have, I can’t imagine the mess when Lucas will die…), we eventually got the excellent first movie we now know as A New Hope. In his initial script, here are a few things you could find: - Han Solo was meant to be a green frog that looks vaguely like a human (cough, Jar-Jar, cough) - Vader was two characters - The Emperor was a random politician - Jabba the Hutt was just a fat human Lucas initially planned a very basic and non-ambitious sequel to it, or even no sequel at all, sure his film wouldn’t be successful and actors like Harrison Ford would never accept to play in a small film. But it was the TOTAL opposite: it was so successful in fact that the plans were rethought. Lucas, not wanting to go through the nightmare of re-directing the movie by himself, he let a much more talented director do it (Lucas isn’t great as a director-he sometimes comes up with interesting ideas as a writer, it happens; not as a director), Lucas let Irvin Kerdhner, his teacher, direct it, and he was so much better at it! Lucas focused on writing, along with someone new, Lawrence Kasdane, bringing to 5 the number of people who at initially were at the head of the making of Star Wars: Lawrence Kasdane, Irvin Kershner, Gary Kurtz, George and Marsia Lucas. Lucas wrote a very directive script, but Kasdane helped making it better. Here are a few things you might not know: - The idea of having Vader kill Obi-Wan was MARSIA’s idea; it’s now viewed as one of the most important events in the Star Wars story and a decisive turning point in Luke’s journey - At the end of Episode V, Lucas had planned to have Leia say “I love you!” to Han (which she does), but Han was supposed to answer “I love you too.” HARRISON FORD, finding it wasn’t a thing his character would say at that point, he proposed to also record the now iconic phrase: “I know.” - The “I am your father” line was _perhaps_ not Lucas’ idea: it was either his, or Kasdane’s. Lucas would be logical if he followed Campbell’s scheme, but Luke eventually doesn’t kill Vader, so that’s not sure. A possible explanation would be for Lucas to have wanted Vader to say “No, Obi-Wan killed your father”, as Luke doesn’t directly react to it and the rest of the movie would still be coherent with this: when Luke tried to talk to Obi-Wan, he’s like “Ben, why didn’t you tell me?” and not like “Ben, is Vader really my father?” → Also, funny thing, Vader telling Luke he was his father was SUPER badly received by the audience: they said it betrayed the first film and kept thinking Vader was lying. It was hated as much as the Prequels in the 2000s when they came out or as TLJ was recently. Lucas, hating that his movie had been modified without his approval, decided to take back control of The Return of the Jedi. He kicked Irvin Kershner off, replacing him with another director, Richard Marquand, who did everything as Lucas wanted. He also got rid of Kasdane for the script and seeing Star Wars became a company that was making most of its profit with goodies and that Lucas made it what it was (creation of Lucasfilm), Gary Kurtz left him too, leaving Lucas alone on top of his empire. While the objectively best film is still TESB, I like TROTJ a lot and I don’y say any of that because I hate it. Lucas didn’t respect Campbell’s scheme of killing the father. He also had planned to get Luke to exile to a remote planet (cough TLJ cough), and Leia was meant to end up on her own as queen of the galaxy. It would have been a good and logical ending, but depressing and, which Lucas probably made a mistake there, I’m happy and I like the ending we got. As another example, Lucas had planned to kill Han, which Ford liked a lot, as a sacrifice, but the ACTUAL reason why he didn’t do it in the end was for the Han Solo toy figurine not to lose sales. Disney at least doesn’t fear killing important characters as they for example killed everyone in Rogue One. Lucas even replaced the Wookiees with Ewoks for the film, only to make more toys… while he could just have made Wookiee toys. And then Lucasfilm didn’t even do much. It was mostly working as a toy company. Disney just kept doing that. Lucasfilm made things as questionable as Disney did, or even more, with that dancing game, 6 months before the Disney acquisition. Disney is just less successful because Lucas, recycling all of his bad ideas for the original trilogy, favoring cool designs, made the crappy prequels to sell more toys. I still like those movies a lot, but they’re just bad. Disney, like TLJ, focuses more on the characters, which is why you get less sellable toys. All you have that actually has a perfect toy design are BB-8 and the Porgs. Would you buy a Poe Dameron figuring? Or a Jyn Erso one? A K2SO one? And Lucas, getting so CRITICIZED for his decisions when he made the Prequels, didn’t want to do it anymore (was he said in his interview). And he freed himself by selling the licence to Disney, with a more talented producer and passionate directors, even though not every film they made was good (I’m thinking of Episode IX). But yes, tell me what you think, but the prequels were a failure. People who grew up with it and are now of age to use a computer or a smartphone, are shouting their love for these movies all over the Internet (and I like them too), but liking, nostalgia and facts are separate concepts. The Prequels are also ads for toys, but also develop too much of the clone wars or politics, instead of characters like Anakin. Lucas is like Darth Vader: someone with a good heart, but who also is the most famous antagonist in the history of cinema. He made great things, but he’s not an artist anymore. Anakin Lucas the artist died and got replaced by Darth George as he left his wife, and got rid of his 3 partners with a K-name, leaving him alone to rule Lucasfilm. The genius of Star Wars isn’t one man: it’s a group of people. And unfortunately, the prequels are exactly Lucas the CEO, without anyone giving him advice, and letting him take his questionable decisions. He became, as Obi-Wan once said, “exactly what you swore to destroy”: a CEO of a production company, while he initially wanted not to end up like his father who was also the CEO of some company. Lucas is a tragic person, not an evil guy. I didn’t compare him to Emperor Palestine; I compared him to Vader. Anakin wasn’t dead and still brought light inside Vader. And there’s still light in Lucas. In the end, it’s thanks to the FANS that we got the Disney acquisition and Lucas letting Star Wars go away is almost a proof of wisdom. He knew he failed several things and did mistakes, but he still wants the best for Star Wars. He might not be an _artist_ (if you don’t take the phrase literally and understand it’s rather exaggerated), he still created Star Wars, directed the first film, initiated the base of that Universe so many people are now in love with, like you and me.
@Amazing Spiderman Fan 2002 : What can I say? I already summarized things quite a bit. It’s a read you should do, even bit by bit, not all at once. But I’m just pointing out how the genius behind Star Wars is far, far away from being Lucas. At least not him alone. The genius behind Star Wars is a group of _people._ And that the worst of the saga actually happens when you let Lucas decide everything.
I just happened to be watching this on my PC with the headphones on, and in the silence waiting for the opening crawl I was transported back 40yrs. In that brief moment I could hear the hiss and crackle of the old movie theatre speakers as everyone waited for the movie to start. It gave me tingles. Thankyou, for giving me that brief ride back to a time when things were right in the world for an 8yr old boy.
Yes, people did care in 1980 about it saying Episode V. I immediately thought "Wait....then what was Star Wars? Episode 4??" And people DID talk about this after the movie opened. It was a game changer, because it's after that we found out that there would be prequels.
Laurelindo Well it technically is the 2nd movie of Star Wars but it’s the fifth episode before prequels were made and Star Wars was revealed as episode 4
@@jimmyk5769I watched a little bit of the DVD commentary for this movie and at the beginning of the opening crawl George Lucas does say "This is the second chapter and it's the middle of the first trilogy. Therefore it has a lot of challenges that the first chapter and the third chapter don't have. Which is there's no beginning and no end". Plus in an interview that came out in the spring of 2005 George Lucas did say this with writing the original screenplay about it being "Episode IV" from the beginning was "I don't like beginnings, I just like to cut right into the middle of the action. I don't like to tell the exposition part of the script". Which seems to make sense in a way I suppose.
I could so imagine Sitting in the cinema "Yeah star wars sequel!" Nek Minnit EPISODE V ..."your fucking with me right? where the fuck were the other three??"
oh wow okay. yeah originally i though none of them had the episode crawl, then he added them in re-releases after the prequels were announced ...either way...back then people would have been confused as fuck
According to him, he had the whole saga figured out from the beginning, he just picked the three last episodes to film first "because technology at the time was limited, and in 30 years or so we could shoot the prequels because the Republican era would need better special effects"
I was 8 years old in 1977 and saw all three original movies in theaters. The episode number was at most a not very important curiosity. My friends and I NEVER used episode numbers to make reference to the movies. We always called them Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back (we left out the "The") and Return of the Jedi (or sometimes just "Jedi.") For me, when people refer to the original movie as "New Hope" or "Episode IV" it feels like a retcon almost as big as Greedo shooting his gun.
+stevieb635 so let's think of the star wars franchis like the bond movies huh? No episodes, just each film commercial as fuck, all along the same lines. Let's just accept that some changes are MUCH better. Adding episode made it grand and more lore-ish. Although only with 4, they shouldn't have tampered with it. That way everyone'll know where to start. It should've been left as "star wars". But adding episode V to thus film would've been a lovely surprise to people. I liked it.
George Lucas always intended for the first movie to have a number, apparently. I remember reading that it would have been episode 6, and after it came out he wanted to make 5 prequels (with 3 of them being about the clone wars) and then two movies that came after episode 6. However, Fox execs thought starting with 6 would be confusing and made him change it to just “Star Wars.” When it seemed like the movie wouldn’t do well he decided to scale it back and planned to do a lower budget sequel called Splinter of the Mind’s Eye if the first movie flopped. I may be misremembering though, it’s been years since I read about this and I can’t find the original interview anymore.
No, he actually added episode iv to original star wars at the theatrical re-release in 1981. He only ever intended to make A New Hope because he didn't know how well it would be perceived. After its release though, it was such a big hit that he decided to make more.
Well here's the thing. A new hope was originally just called Star Wars and In 1977 had no episode iv dring the crawling text but then this one is the one that confused us all. Because I watched these movies in order as a kid and I don't mean chronological order
+Bawbster1 oh nooooooooooooo I've heard these "rumours" about the movie not labelled as episode 7, the light sabre through space at the start, the idea that Disney wanted opening credits. but I've heard all of these rumours separately. the thing that makes me worry about your post, is that it actually makes sense and I can see why both sides would take such a stance. I think your info is probably true. If Star Wars: The Force Awakens has credits at the start, I vow to walk out of the movie before the credits are over and I will wait until it comes out on DVD or Blu-Ray.
I cried. It's the first time that ever in my life time that I've ever seen the title crawl in theaters since I never got a chance to see the prequels in theaters as a kid
I Love The Empire Strikes Back so much and I can't believe that The Empire Strikes Back is going to be 45 years old next year in 2025. The Empire Strikes Back had everything that I love about Star Wars, it had brilliant direction by Irvin Kershner, and The Empire Strikes Back was an awesome sequel to Star Wars 1977. The Empire Strikes Back was also the big film that came out a year after Alien with Sigourney Weaver and Moonraker with Roger Moore in May 1980, The Empire Strikes Back had the best cliffhanger ending in cinema history, and I also really love both Alien and Moonraker from 1979. I Love Alien by Ridley Scott as one of my all time favorite films, Moonraker was my very first bond film that made me a James Bond fan, and Moonraker with Roger Moore is a way much better film than Disney's The Black Hole.
It is a dark time for the Rebellion. Although the death star has been destroyed, Imperial troops have driven the rebel forces from their hidden base and pursued them across the galaxy.
Evading the dreaded Imperial Starfleer, a group of freedom fighters led by Luke Skywalker has established a new secret base on the remote ice world of Hoth.
The fanfare sounds a bit different with each opening crawl but this one sounds more like the version that was used for the prequels' crawls and is used in most tributes.
I always noticed that with film in the original trilogy. The prequels have the same fanfare throughout the trilogy. The sequels do too, but I’m convinced someone bought some recording of it off of iTunes and just put John Williams’ name on it in the credits
The "A New Hope" name was added to the film in the early 80's before Empire was released but it was still named "Star Wars" until Phantom Menace came along in 1999
It was added after Empire was released actually, when Star Wars was re-released in 1981 (according to StarWars.com). So Empire Strikes Back, when it was released in 1980, was the first Star Wars film with an "episode" and number in the opening crawl.
@@ahuddles77 right. For those who don’t know Empire came out on 05/21/1980, but the Episode 4 A New Hope subtitle was added the year after in April of ‘81
It is a dark time for the Rebellion. Although the Death Star has been destroyed, Imperial troops have driven the Rebel forces from their hidden base and pursued them across the galaxy. Evading the dreaded Imperial Starfleet, a group of Freedom Fighters led by Luke Skywalker has established a new secret base on the remote Ice World of Hoth. The Evil Lord Darth Vader, obsessed with finding Young Skywalker, has dispatched thousands of remote probes into the far reaches of space.
Story Mode: It is a dark time for the Rebellion. Although the Death Star has been destroyed, Imperial troops have driven the Rebel forces from their hidden base and pursued them across the galaxy. Evading the dreaded Imperial Starfleet, a group of Freedom Fighters led by Luke Skywalker has established a new secret base on the remote Ice World of Hoth. The Evil Lord Darth Vader, obsessed with finding Young Skywalker, has dispatched thousands of remote probes into the far reaches of space.
For me it's Return of the Jedi. ESB is great, too. But then again Star Wars is not bad either. AAAAAAAA I can't pick just one, I'll say the whole trilogy is the greatest movie of all time.
@@rishin7852 it did, if Lucas isn't involved it doesn't count. It's like going to watch your favorite band in concert and discovering none of the members are there but they continue using the same name.
I've always enjoyed John Williams' accentuated tuba and percussion played throughout "Empire's" opening crawl.....sounds more bombastic than in any other Episode.....
Lucas wanted to do a saga of 6 movies, and his ideas for the prequels required better technology, so he did first the 3 last ones and then the prequels. And actually he thought to do sn eoisode VII in 2011, but he was so old, so he sold Star Wars to Disney and everyone know what happened after that....
By the time Star Wars was a success, Lucas was thinking about the prequels. There are a few interviews from before the release of Episode V where the actors talk about Lucas' ideas for the prequels. Apparently, Luke (and Leia too, although them being brother and sister wasn't established until the writing of Episode VI) were going to be around 5-6. Pretty interesting. In the 1981 re-release of A New Hope, it's name was changed to "A New Hope" and had "Episode IV" above. Still, people are stubborn and won't call it A New Hope to this day.
Yes. Also, A New Hope was simply known as "Star Wars" when it first released, but was retroactively changed to Episode IV in 1981 when Empire released. George wanted to title it Episode IV from the start, but the studio didn't allow it.
Yes, Lucas had planned from very early on to do prequels. The first Star Wars movie was also changed to "Episode IV" in 1981 I believe, during its re-release. He wanted to do this from the start, but the studio didn't allow it, so he had to simply call it "Star Wars".
Yes, Empire was the first Star Wars movie to be released with an episode number onscreen. The ‘Episode IV: A New Hope’ opening title was then added retroactively to Star Wars 1977 (which was previously known merely as ‘Star Wars’) for its 1981 re-release, a year after Empire’s release. Although the original trilogy episode numbers were not added to posters and marketing materials until the 1997 Special Edition releases.
***** this isn't the original opening because they didn't have "Episodes" in the past. some theatres didn't even use the name "Star Wars" in front of their entrances.
Taseen Khan This is the original, believe it or not and it did have the "Episode V" in the crawl. I don't know why they chose to do this, as it is confusing, but yep, this is the original cut.
I was was watching my theatrical release of this movie and I was so confused when it said Episode V so I came to the internet to see if this maybe truly wasn't the very original theatrical release but it is. That is so weird. Probably Lucas' idea lol.
+supporteedcoffee If time travel was ever invented and I could go back to that day (minus the possibilities of the future being changed) I would go into a theater and watch just to see.
Star Wars and Final Fantasy has even more similarities than i thought. I don't mean story-wise, i mean art and production-wise. People reacting "WTF, where's the three Movies/Games we missed?!" is one of those similarities.
@@andreiefectivuatafac1966 Never said that was the only thing that matters. I have a degree in film studies, made my own short films, and pretty much know Star Wars inside out since 1996 thank you.
This was supposed to be the second movie in the saga when it came out, they didn’t know they were making prequels. So why does it say episode V?????????
Star Wars : Episode V is a parody of the Flash Gordon television shows that George Lucas grew up watching when he was a kid (which was where he got the inspiration to create the movies in the first place). It was back when you couldn't watch re-runs of an episode from a TV show that already aired, you had to watch it at the time when it was on and if you missed it you never saw it again.
They changed the ending... Sequels were ALWAYS planned by Lucas. I'm not a big fan of him anymore, but he did not lie about this. Francis Coppola even mentioned (many times) that Lucas kept going on and on about keeping the rights to any sequels while filming Star Wars. Coppola would often tell him to just finish the first one, and stop worrying about it. So did Steven Speilberg. This is well documented. Are the ALL LIARS Rylore1979??
agfagaevart Even if you are right, one things for certain. George Lucas was telling a HUGE LIE when he said that he already had the scripts planned for all six movies back in 1977. In one of the deleted scenes from the original Star Wars, one of the X-Wing pilots tells Luke: "I knew your father when I was just a boy." Lmfao, solid proof that he did not even have Empire ready back then.
ChrisIsONLINE You just proved he wasn't lying. You said he had scripts PLANNED! I've seen rough drafts of his PLANNED scripts in JW Rinzler's book. You dont have to believe me, just read it!
ChrisIsONLINE I am right; Just because he decided to make Darth Luke's father during filming of Empire means nothing. He decided to kill off Ben while filming Star Wars. So? You can plan to do something without know all the exact details of how or what you will end up doing. And you can make changes along the way. This happens all the time in the movie business. Do you know how many drafts of the Empire script were written?? Read Rinzler's book. Watch the BBC Omnibus documentary about Lucas inwhich Francis Ford Coppola says what I mentioned above. Don't believe if you wish. It is STILL TRUE.
Guys it's just when a new hope came out it did not say a new hope when the emipre strikes back came out it said the title same with return of the Jedi in 1997 a new hope began to say its title
Breathtaking battle scenes, had the heroes actually lose for once, great romance and of course, the classic "I am your father" twist. Even though Revenge is my favorite, I perfectly understand why everyone considers Empire top of the ladder in Star Wars media, Even with 2003 Clone Wars and Knights of the Old Republic already proving to be worthy contenders for the title.
And was it all just because Lucas only got to watch Flash Gordon from Episode 4 when he was a small kid and then the earlier ones when he was in his twenties? 😂
I want to watch how the original Star Wars was meant to be seen from my childhood in the 80's. I'm tired of watching the special editions. They better upload or release the theatrical versions of Star Wars on blu ray.
Yes, but the prequels required more technology and stuff that didn't exist in the 80's, so he did the 3 last movies and waited some years to do the prequels.
you people are really making me pull this disused account out of hibernation just to make this PSA:
this IS the original theatrical crawl as it was originally seen on release
The Empire Strikes Back was NEVER released or marketed as "Episode II"
from day one it was always "Episode V"
Correct, though Lucasfilms and Fox avoided calling it Episode V until the film hit theatres, so fans called it Star Wars 2 until it came out. Of course, the Episode number weren't really relevant until the prequels; home video releases only begrudgingly called Star Wars "A New Hope" on official products in the 90's, over a decade after "Episode IV: A NEW HOPE" was appended to the film.
As I recall, even the trailers for the Special Edition in theaters called "A New Hope" "Star Wars". Wasn't until "The Phantom Menace" that "A New Hope" was finally marketed as such
"Well yes, but actually..... no"
@@mikurtis1767 That's correct.
@@flametitan100 it was renamed to Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope in 1981
I wonder how many people were fucking confused when they saw the "Episode V" back in 1980
+BoilingHotCoffee At least two, counting my friend and myself when we went.
+vonbontee Did you went to the movie premiere in 1980? wow...
Did the original release had the "EPISODE V" legend on the title? I thought that "EPISODE V" was added later.
Thanks and sorry for my bad english
+Rukazu Hi. The title Episode V was in the original release of Empire. People kind of disagree on why Lucas did this. Some people say he already had a very long draft similar to what it was told on the prequels plus what you can see on Star Wars 1977 and a little more... using the second half of this long story he decided to call this Episode V (maybe even considering the possibility of making the prequels in the future... but nothing too clear).
Other people think this is a homage to 40s & 50s "serials": short films of episodic nature that usually end with a cliffhanger that was picked up in the next episode (the original Flash Gordon, 1936 had 13 episodes) sometimes you went to a theater and the serial would begin with the episode V, or VII (maybe the theater didn't have the previous ones or maybe they already show those last week); the serials used to have this style of crawling titles explaining the story cause probably you didn't watch the previous ones; So its a homage to this films that inspired Lucas...
+BoilingHotCoffee It was explained in interviews and marketing at the time, but at least one person I saw it with said out loud, "Episode V???? WHY?"
I remember Mark Hamill saying in an interview that this would be the fifth chapter, the sequel would be #6 and then they would be on a break while the first 3 chapters were made, then he would be back for the final trilogy as an older Luke. Those plans have been a source of confusion ever since
Rukazu Not the premiere...I don't think it hit my town until June '80 or so. But I'd avoided spoilers! A wise decision in retrospect, obv
"I Can't wait to see Star Wars Part 2!" Guy says.
"Shush! It's starting!" Girl says.
STAR WARS
EPISODE V
THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK
"Wait, episode 5? then were's episodes 1,2,3, and 4!?!" Both say.
Lol
"Did we miss something?....Did 3 movies come out and we didn't know about it??"
Imagine if one guy behind them says, "Well, we can assume 'Star Wars' was episode one, and I guess the 'Holiday Special' was episode 2, but what happened to 3 and 4?"
A former college professor told me a funny story: He had friends who watched The Empire Strikes Back so many times in theaters, they memorized the opening crawl. During one showing, a tall guy sat in front of them and refused to move. Without seeing the screen, my professor's friends read the crawl out loud. They tall guy in front of them got up and changed seats.
we need a live action reimagining of this comment
Lol
"Who'da thought Darth Vader was Luke Skywalker's father??" --Homer Simpson
>:( This is how the crowd after Homer spoiled the ending for Star Wars Episode V for everyone waiting in line. They Weren't very happy at all.
The JAWAS knew
Thank you Mr. Blow The Picture For Me.
@@xcell5215 😂 classic
Oh thank you Mr. Blow The Picture For Me!
People be like: WTF we missed the other 3?
25 years later, those same people would be wishing the other three were never made.
Yep, it's sad how people are blind by the nostalgia.
+Tommy Dee People asked for them and they got them. Their choice.
sad that people still think the prequels are bad lmao
4* Because STAR WARS 1977 didn't have EPISODE IV at the beginning
You learn something new every day. I always thought the original trilogy received the "Episode...." during the 1997 re-release since Episode I was in the making. They didn't have the Episode # on the original VHS covers
Me too, I thought the crawl heading would just be The Empire Strikes Back and then the paragraphs beginning beneath it.
So did I! I thought the original version of Episode V only said, "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" and not the episode v logo
I did too! Can't believe I never knew this
Apparently 'Episode V' was in the original release of Empire Strikes Back, which is weird because it never appears in the advertising and no-one seemed to care. 'A New Hope' was added in 1981 when it was re-released in cinemas.
The first movie of the saga with the word ''Episode''.
strange how it says episodes. that's usually reserved for tv shows
Well it’s actually a reference to TV shows Lucas would never find the first episode of. Also, that does NOT mean they had the story all planned for the two first trilogies. And I say _they_ because Lucas had the idea of Star Wars, named most characters and directed the first movie, but he didn’t _make_ Star Wars AT ALL.
@Amazing Spiderman Fan 2002 : What is the problem in all I said?
@Amazing Spiderman Fan 2002 : Well that’s just the truth.
I will expand a bit, but DON’T READ in case you understand French, in which case I can link a video that will explain things much better than I will try to summarize. It’s 50 minutes so no French or English subtitles have been made yet. You’ll have guessed it: I’m French myself so sorry for my English and for typing this on a phone. Having not proofread anything, there probably are several grammar mistakes, sentences that you can’t understand and some typos, thanks to the small keyboard, autocorrect, and my English level. In case you don’t understand French, enjoy this, excuse the length, and just take one second to estimate how much time I spent writing this entire “essay”!
Lucas initially dreamed to make a Flash Gordon film, but as he was refused the rights, he did what many people do in his position: copying in his own. It’s kind of how Star Wars was born. Then Lucas, after days of writing, he up with the very first script of the very first Star Wars film. And it was absolute crap! The people he worked with (like 3 very famous directors, including Spielberg, as well as his own cinema teacher Irvin Kershner who directed the best Star Wars film, The Empire Strikes Back)… they all told Lucas his script was bad: too much politics, too many word terms like “Jedi-Bendu”, “Sith”, or weird character names like “Mace Windu” or “Anakin Starkiller” (cough, prequels, cough).
He didn’t only take inspiration from Flash Gordon, of course, there were also some Pirate film inspiration, Samurais, Nazi propaganda and war films. And most importantly, Joseph Campbell’s theory of the monomyth: a theory according to which many man-made stories had the same scheme for The Hero’s Journey: a young man who fights to subvert how things are established, guided by an old man’s figure, and had to eventually kill his father, as a bad figure of authority. You can watch TED-ED’s video about The Hero’s Journey to get it better.
Instead of focusing on useless political development, Lucas was advised to focus more on the characters like Luke. So many people actually edited the script that it wasn’t even Lucas’ anymore. In the end, he’s still th he only one to get credit for writing the movie. Then with the 6th version of the script, they started recording, which as an absolute mess, with actors like Alec Guinness who hated doing the move (though he still played well, kudos to him). But with some expert editing from his wife Marsia, and clever actor direction from Producer Gary Kurtz (who died recently and no one cared but OH BOI we should have, I can’t imagine the mess when Lucas will die…), we eventually got the excellent first movie we now know as A New Hope.
In his initial script, here are a few things you could find:
- Han Solo was meant to be a green frog that looks vaguely like a human (cough, Jar-Jar, cough)
- Vader was two characters
- The Emperor was a random politician
- Jabba the Hutt was just a fat human
Lucas initially planned a very basic and non-ambitious sequel to it, or even no sequel at all, sure his film wouldn’t be successful and actors like Harrison Ford would never accept to play in a small film. But it was the TOTAL opposite: it was so successful in fact that the plans were rethought.
Lucas, not wanting to go through the nightmare of re-directing the movie by himself, he let a much more talented director do it (Lucas isn’t great as a director-he sometimes comes up with interesting ideas as a writer, it happens; not as a director), Lucas let Irvin Kerdhner, his teacher, direct it, and he was so much better at it! Lucas focused on writing, along with someone new, Lawrence Kasdane, bringing to 5 the number of people who at initially were at the head of the making of Star Wars: Lawrence Kasdane, Irvin Kershner, Gary Kurtz, George and Marsia Lucas.
Lucas wrote a very directive script, but Kasdane helped making it better. Here are a few things you might not know:
- The idea of having Vader kill Obi-Wan was MARSIA’s idea; it’s now viewed as one of the most important events in the Star Wars story and a decisive turning point in Luke’s journey
- At the end of Episode V, Lucas had planned to have Leia say “I love you!” to Han (which she does), but Han was supposed to answer “I love you too.” HARRISON FORD, finding it wasn’t a thing his character would say at that point, he proposed to also record the now iconic phrase: “I know.”
- The “I am your father” line was _perhaps_ not Lucas’ idea: it was either his, or Kasdane’s. Lucas would be logical if he followed Campbell’s scheme, but Luke eventually doesn’t kill Vader, so that’s not sure. A possible explanation would be for Lucas to have wanted Vader to say “No, Obi-Wan killed your father”, as Luke doesn’t directly react to it and the rest of the movie would still be coherent with this: when Luke tried to talk to Obi-Wan, he’s like “Ben, why didn’t you tell me?” and not like “Ben, is Vader really my father?”
→ Also, funny thing, Vader telling Luke he was his father was SUPER badly received by the audience: they said it betrayed the first film and kept thinking Vader was lying. It was hated as much as the Prequels in the 2000s when they came out or as TLJ was recently.
Lucas, hating that his movie had been modified without his approval, decided to take back control of The Return of the Jedi. He kicked Irvin Kershner off, replacing him with another director, Richard Marquand, who did everything as Lucas wanted. He also got rid of Kasdane for the script and seeing Star Wars became a company that was making most of its profit with goodies and that Lucas made it what it was (creation of Lucasfilm), Gary Kurtz left him too, leaving Lucas alone on top of his empire.
While the objectively best film is still TESB, I like TROTJ a lot and I don’y say any of that because I hate it. Lucas didn’t respect Campbell’s scheme of killing the father. He also had planned to get Luke to exile to a remote planet (cough TLJ cough), and Leia was meant to end up on her own as queen of the galaxy. It would have been a good and logical ending, but depressing and, which Lucas probably made a mistake there, I’m happy and I like the ending we got. As another example, Lucas had planned to kill Han, which Ford liked a lot, as a sacrifice, but the ACTUAL reason why he didn’t do it in the end was for the Han Solo toy figurine not to lose sales. Disney at least doesn’t fear killing important characters as they for example killed everyone in Rogue One. Lucas even replaced the Wookiees with Ewoks for the film, only to make more toys… while he could just have made Wookiee toys.
And then Lucasfilm didn’t even do much. It was mostly working as a toy company. Disney just kept doing that. Lucasfilm made things as questionable as Disney did, or even more, with that dancing game, 6 months before the Disney acquisition. Disney is just less successful because Lucas, recycling all of his bad ideas for the original trilogy, favoring cool designs, made the crappy prequels to sell more toys. I still like those movies a lot, but they’re just bad. Disney, like TLJ, focuses more on the characters, which is why you get less sellable toys. All you have that actually has a perfect toy design are BB-8 and the Porgs. Would you buy a Poe Dameron figuring? Or a Jyn Erso one? A K2SO one?
And Lucas, getting so CRITICIZED for his decisions when he made the Prequels, didn’t want to do it anymore (was he said in his interview). And he freed himself by selling the licence to Disney, with a more talented producer and passionate directors, even though not every film they made was good (I’m thinking of Episode IX).
But yes, tell me what you think, but the prequels were a failure. People who grew up with it and are now of age to use a computer or a smartphone, are shouting their love for these movies all over the Internet (and I like them too), but liking, nostalgia and facts are separate concepts. The Prequels are also ads for toys, but also develop too much of the clone wars or politics, instead of characters like Anakin.
Lucas is like Darth Vader: someone with a good heart, but who also is the most famous antagonist in the history of cinema. He made great things, but he’s not an artist anymore. Anakin Lucas the artist died and got replaced by Darth George as he left his wife, and got rid of his 3 partners with a K-name, leaving him alone to rule Lucasfilm. The genius of Star Wars isn’t one man: it’s a group of people. And unfortunately, the prequels are exactly Lucas the CEO, without anyone giving him advice, and letting him take his questionable decisions. He became, as Obi-Wan once said, “exactly what you swore to destroy”: a CEO of a production company, while he initially wanted not to end up like his father who was also the CEO of some company.
Lucas is a tragic person, not an evil guy. I didn’t compare him to Emperor Palestine; I compared him to Vader. Anakin wasn’t dead and still brought light inside Vader. And there’s still light in Lucas. In the end, it’s thanks to the FANS that we got the Disney acquisition and Lucas letting Star Wars go away is almost a proof of wisdom. He knew he failed several things and did mistakes, but he still wants the best for Star Wars. He might not be an _artist_ (if you don’t take the phrase literally and understand it’s rather exaggerated), he still created Star Wars, directed the first film, initiated the base of that Universe so many people are now in love with, like you and me.
@Amazing Spiderman Fan 2002 : What can I say? I already summarized things quite a bit. It’s a read you should do, even bit by bit, not all at once. But I’m just pointing out how the genius behind Star Wars is far, far away from being Lucas. At least not him alone. The genius behind Star Wars is a group of _people._ And that the worst of the saga actually happens when you let Lucas decide everything.
I just happened to be watching this on my PC with the headphones on, and in the silence waiting for the opening crawl I was transported back 40yrs. In that brief moment I could hear the hiss and crackle of the old movie theatre speakers as everyone waited for the movie to start. It gave me tingles. Thankyou, for giving me that brief ride back to a time when things were right in the world for an 8yr old boy.
In 1980 people reaction: What the hell? You mean episode II? I guess it’s wrong number
And then : I don't like sand.....
TheGarfieldxx30000 Why the hell are you everywhere? The heck?
I DONT REMEMBER TYPING THAT BRUVHHCJGJX
1980 people: Well, it's a "V", and it hss two sticks, so it's a 2!
I can imagine people were thinking "Episode 5 eh, what happened to Episode 2-4?"
The best movie, opening crawl, and soundtrack ever made!
I do not beleive people cared in 1980 about "Episode V". Everything was just freaking awesome anyway.
Yes, people did care in 1980 about it saying Episode V. I immediately thought "Wait....then what was Star Wars? Episode 4??" And people DID talk about this after the movie opened. It was a game changer, because it's after that we found out that there would be prequels.
I always thought that Episode 5 was known as "Star Wars 2" or something when it was released in theaters. =P
Laurelindo Well it technically is the 2nd movie of Star Wars but it’s the fifth episode before prequels were made and Star Wars was revealed as episode 4
Exactly what I thought and said after seing in 1980...
@@jimmyk5769I watched a little bit of the DVD commentary for this movie and at the beginning of the opening crawl George Lucas does say "This is the second chapter and it's the middle of the first trilogy. Therefore it has a lot of challenges that the first chapter and the third chapter don't have. Which is there's no beginning and no end". Plus in an interview that came out in the spring of 2005 George Lucas did say this with writing the original screenplay about it being "Episode IV" from the beginning was "I don't like beginnings, I just like to cut right into the middle of the action. I don't like to tell the exposition part of the script". Which seems to make sense in a way I suppose.
I could so imagine
Sitting in the cinema
"Yeah star wars sequel!"
Nek Minnit
EPISODE V
..."your fucking with me right? where the fuck were the other three??"
oh wow okay. yeah originally i though none of them had the episode crawl, then he added them in re-releases after the prequels were announced
...either way...back then people would have been confused as fuck
This is how it appeared in 1980. "Star Wars Episode V The Empire Strikes Back"
According to him, he had the whole saga figured out from the beginning, he just picked the three last episodes to film first "because technology at the time was limited, and in 30 years or so we could shoot the prequels because the Republican era would need better special effects"
I was 8 years old in 1977 and saw all three original movies in theaters. The episode number was at most a not very important curiosity. My friends and I NEVER used episode numbers to make reference to the movies. We always called them Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back (we left out the "The") and Return of the Jedi (or sometimes just "Jedi.") For me, when people refer to the original movie as "New Hope" or "Episode IV" it feels like a retcon almost as big as Greedo shooting his gun.
+stevieb635 Same here! couldn't agree more.
+stevieb635 so let's think of the star wars franchis like the bond movies huh? No episodes, just each film commercial as fuck, all along the same lines. Let's just accept that some changes are MUCH better. Adding episode made it grand and more lore-ish. Although only with 4, they shouldn't have tampered with it. That way everyone'll know where to start. It should've been left as "star wars". But adding episode V to thus film would've been a lovely surprise to people. I liked it.
I mean... the "retcon" was made in 1981.
you're overeacting
George Lucas always intended for the first movie to have a number, apparently. I remember reading that it would have been episode 6, and after it came out he wanted to make 5 prequels (with 3 of them being about the clone wars) and then two movies that came after episode 6. However, Fox execs thought starting with 6 would be confusing and made him change it to just “Star Wars.” When it seemed like the movie wouldn’t do well he decided to scale it back and planned to do a lower budget sequel called Splinter of the Mind’s Eye if the first movie flopped. I may be misremembering though, it’s been years since I read about this and I can’t find the original interview anymore.
*_Insert Mandatory "Missed Three Films" Joke_*
No, he actually added episode iv to original star wars at the theatrical re-release in 1981. He only ever intended to make A New Hope because he didn't know how well it would be perceived. After its release though, it was such a big hit that he decided to make more.
So began the best Star Wars film of them all, and one of the best films of all time :)
Its gonna be so magical just seeing the opening crawl for episode 7 in theaters again.
Damn right ☺️☺️ Surrounded by strangers,friends and family when the StarWars opening crawl appears will be amazing
+Twigzmaster 2.0 You are young, are you not? I do not sense anything.
yeah 22 year old :)
+Twigzmaster 2.0 I just hope that they use the version of the theme song that was used in the prequels.
why ?? that version sucked..it was no where near as magical as the original trilogs theme
i never knew the episode designation was ever in empire and Jedi... i assumed they added them all retroactively... interesting
Can you imagine the audible reactions of people in the theater day one as "Episode V" appears on screen
Well here's the thing. A new hope was originally just called Star Wars and In 1977 had no episode iv dring the crawling text but then this one is the one that confused us all. Because I watched these movies in order as a kid and I don't mean chronological order
People in the theater "damn i missed 3 movies ?!"
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away....
When the title crawl pops up in episode 7, I will cry.
Same... It's so iconic
+Bawbster1 oh nooooooooooooo
I've heard these "rumours" about the movie not labelled as episode 7, the light sabre through space at the start, the idea that Disney wanted opening credits. but I've heard all of these rumours separately. the thing that makes me worry about your post, is that it actually makes sense and I can see why both sides would take such a stance. I think your info is probably true.
If Star Wars: The Force Awakens has credits at the start, I vow to walk out of the movie before the credits are over and I will wait until it comes out on DVD or Blu-Ray.
+Mgen Strange i almost did it is fantastic.
I cried. It's the first time that ever in my life time that I've ever seen the title crawl in theaters since I never got a chance to see the prequels in theaters as a kid
I cried because both 7 and 8 sucks ass
The original trilogy was definitely the “golden days” of Star Wars 👌
I saw this when it was releaesed.
I Love The Empire Strikes Back so much and I can't believe that The Empire Strikes Back is going to be 45 years old next year in 2025. The Empire Strikes Back had everything that I love about Star Wars, it had brilliant direction by Irvin Kershner, and The Empire Strikes Back was an awesome sequel to Star Wars 1977. The Empire Strikes Back was also the big film that came out a year after Alien with Sigourney Weaver and Moonraker with Roger Moore in May 1980, The Empire Strikes Back had the best cliffhanger ending in cinema history, and I also really love both Alien and Moonraker from 1979.
I Love Alien by Ridley Scott as one of my all time favorite films, Moonraker was my very first bond film that made me a James Bond fan, and Moonraker with Roger Moore is a way much better film than Disney's The Black Hole.
It is a dark time for the Rebellion. Although the death star has been destroyed, Imperial troops have driven the rebel forces from their hidden base and pursued them across the galaxy.
Evading the dreaded Imperial Starfleer, a group of freedom fighters led by Luke Skywalker has established a new secret base on the remote ice world of Hoth.
The Evil Lord Darth Vader, obsessed with finding young Skywalker, has dispatched thousands of remote probes out into the far reaches of space....
shouldn't it be rebels?
@@flametitan100 they should put the evil Sith lord darth Vader if prequels came out first
The fanfare sounds a bit different with each opening crawl but this one sounds more like the version that was used for the prequels' crawls and is used in most tributes.
I always noticed that with film in the original trilogy. The prequels have the same fanfare throughout the trilogy. The sequels do too, but I’m convinced someone bought some recording of it off of iTunes and just put John Williams’ name on it in the credits
Like I mentioned above, 'ESB' just has more soniferous tuba and percussion accents in its Crawl than in the other films.
People in 1980 realizing that says "Episode V": Excuse me, sir, WHAT THE FU-?!
The "A New Hope" name was added to the film in the early 80's before Empire was released but it was still named "Star Wars" until Phantom Menace came along in 1999
It was added after Empire was released actually, when Star Wars was re-released in 1981 (according to StarWars.com). So Empire Strikes Back, when it was released in 1980, was the first Star Wars film with an "episode" and number in the opening crawl.
@@ahuddles77 right. For those who don’t know Empire came out on 05/21/1980, but the Episode 4 A New Hope subtitle was added the year after in April of ‘81
It is a dark time for the Rebellion. Although the Death Star has been destroyed, Imperial troops have driven the Rebel forces from their hidden base and pursued them across the galaxy. Evading the dreaded Imperial Starfleet, a group of Freedom Fighters led by Luke Skywalker has established a new secret base on the remote Ice World of Hoth. The Evil Lord Darth Vader, obsessed with finding Young Skywalker, has dispatched thousands of remote probes into the far reaches of space.
Story Mode: It is a dark time for the Rebellion. Although the Death Star has been destroyed, Imperial troops have driven the Rebel forces from their hidden base and pursued them across the galaxy. Evading the dreaded Imperial Starfleet, a group of Freedom Fighters led by Luke Skywalker has established a new secret base on the remote Ice World of Hoth. The Evil Lord Darth Vader, obsessed with finding Young Skywalker, has dispatched thousands of remote probes into the far reaches of space.
THE BEST MOVIE
The greatest movie of all time!
no
return of the jedi, attack of the clones, homeward bound: the incredible journey and a new hope are better
@@thedictationofallah return of the jedi, maybe, but attack of the clones☠☠☠
You're trolling
@@thedictationofallahnope Episode 5>Episode 4>Episode 6>Episode 7>Episode 3>Episode 8>Episode 2>Episode 9>Episode 1
For me it's Return of the Jedi. ESB is great, too. But then again Star Wars is not bad either. AAAAAAAA I can't pick just one, I'll say the whole trilogy is the greatest movie of all time.
Best movie of the generation.
>be moviegoer in 1981 whatever
>Episode V
That was must have thrown everyone for a loop
I'm a Star Wars fan !!! 😘💕 I love Darth Vader
It seamed like Lucas wanted to make the prequels from the very beginning.
i think during ESB pre-production, a basic layout was made for the prequels.
No actually. "A New Hope" was added for when the film was re-released in theaters before Empire.
Episode 5
The Empire Strikes Back
"A group of freedom fighters led by Luke Skywalker"
Shame Rian Johnson couldn't compute that.
Luke Skywalker was never in the last Jedi it was an imposter....
At least that's what I tell myself
@@i_chosen_one_ips432 I used to do that until I realized everything else sucks, so I just tell myself that whole trilogy never happened
@@penske_material let's just say STAR WARS ends Episode 1-6
@@rishin7852 it did, if Lucas isn't involved it doesn't count. It's like going to watch your favorite band in concert and discovering none of the members are there but they continue using the same name.
I've always enjoyed John Williams' accentuated tuba and percussion played throughout "Empire's" opening crawl.....sounds more bombastic than in any other Episode.....
This is TESB proginal opening crawl but "Episode V" is there. When did Lucas conceive the idea for prequels???
Back in the 80's
a basic plotline during 5 story developlmnent was thought of which GL thought would be prequels
Lucas wanted to do a saga of 6 movies, and his ideas for the prequels required better technology, so he did first the 3 last ones and then the prequels.
And actually he thought to do sn eoisode VII in 2011, but he was so old, so he sold Star Wars to Disney and everyone know what happened after that....
@@wilymoto6501 Disney - a hive of scum and villainy
@@wilymoto6501We just pretend it ended on Endor.
I'm so confused, why did it has EPISODE V in the original release? And when did episode IV recive the name "Episode IV: A new hope"?
By the time Star Wars was a success, Lucas was thinking about the prequels. There are a few interviews from before the release of Episode V where the actors talk about Lucas' ideas for the prequels. Apparently, Luke (and Leia too, although them being brother and sister wasn't established until the writing of Episode VI) were going to be around 5-6. Pretty interesting. In the 1981 re-release of A New Hope, it's name was changed to "A New Hope" and had "Episode IV" above. Still, people are stubborn and won't call it A New Hope to this day.
@@procyon6370 damn they had all planned since the beginning
Nah, just by 78 or 79, I think. Still, pretty crazy how far in advance Lucas did plan. Creative genius.
My favorite episode !!
Does it actually says “episode v” when it first released?
Yes.
Also, A New Hope was simply known as "Star Wars" when it first released, but was retroactively changed to Episode IV in 1981 when Empire released. George wanted to title it Episode IV from the start, but the studio didn't allow it.
Cool the empire strikes back. original theatrical INTRODUCTION
Was “Episode V” an original 1980 inclusion? I thought the prequel trilogy wasn’t written until 1997
Yes, Lucas had planned from very early on to do prequels. The first Star Wars movie was also changed to "Episode IV" in 1981 I believe, during its re-release. He wanted to do this from the start, but the studio didn't allow it, so he had to simply call it "Star Wars".
Yes, Empire was the first Star Wars movie to be released with an episode number onscreen. The ‘Episode IV: A New Hope’ opening title was then added retroactively to Star Wars 1977 (which was previously known merely as ‘Star Wars’) for its 1981 re-release, a year after Empire’s release. Although the original trilogy episode numbers were not added to posters and marketing materials until the 1997 Special Edition releases.
Any canadians using this because disney+ thinks we’re a french speaking country?
I think
1. They were all exited by the intro they didn’t read the crawl
2. What is that “Episode Vee” means?
Demorios The "V" is the Roman numeral form of the number 5, meaning that this is the fifth episode in the "Star Wars" saga
Actually, I read that in early development, the crawl was in front of planet "Hoth", instead of in space.
thats incorrect
Aiden Boomer 1, it's on StarWars.com, and 2, I meant early development, not the final theatrical release.
***** this isn't the original opening because they didn't have "Episodes" in the past. some theatres didn't even use the name "Star Wars" in front of their entrances.
Taseen Khan The first one was just called Star Wars, before being renamed "A New Hope".
Taseen Khan This is the original, believe it or not and it did have the "Episode V" in the crawl. I don't know why they chose to do this, as it is confusing, but yep, this is the original cut.
The evil lord Darth Vader, obsessed with finding young Skywalker, has dispatched thousand of remote probes into the far reaches of Instagram....
Happy Star Wars Day Everyone! May The 4th Be With You!
I was was watching my theatrical release of this movie and I was so confused when it said Episode V so I came to the internet to see if this maybe truly wasn't the very original theatrical release but it is. That is so weird. Probably Lucas' idea lol.
+supporteedcoffee If time travel was ever invented and I could go back to that day (minus the possibilities of the future being changed) I would go into a theater and watch just to see.
Too bad alot will deny and an answer would be he made the ep1 jar jar for a new gen but it could
BEen there for ages
+lurchipoo. He hadn't written them at all, he didn't even finish the final draft of Episode III until a couple of weeks before filming began.
Star Wars and Final Fantasy has even more similarities than i thought.
I don't mean story-wise, i mean art and production-wise.
People reacting "WTF, where's the three Movies/Games we missed?!" is one of those similarities.
I miss when the Star Wars theme had a "punch" like this. The Disney opening themes suffer from impotency, just like their lightsaber fights!
John Williams is conducting a different, much smaller orchestra.
The only thing that matter in a movie is the music from the opening crawl and the lightsaber battles. How much film knowledge you have?!
@@andreiefectivuatafac1966 Never said that was the only thing that matters. I have a degree in film studies, made my own short films, and pretty much know Star Wars inside out since 1996 thank you.
@@slashville if you have a degree, than you know what you are saying
@@slashville where i can find your short film. I really wanna see it
Is the first ever version of empire strikes back called "episode V" on the opening crawl?
Yes
+Kayden Ellingson in 1981 they had a new hope and empire in theatres
Wasn't it originally run as Episode II...?
No it wasn't. It did release as episode v.
This was supposed to be the second movie in the saga when it came out, they didn’t know they were making prequels. So why does it say episode V?????????
Star Wars : Episode V is a parody of the Flash Gordon television shows that George Lucas grew up watching when he was a kid (which was where he got the inspiration to create the movies in the first place). It was back when you couldn't watch re-runs of an episode from a TV show that already aired, you had to watch it at the time when it was on and if you missed it you never saw it again.
it was always episode 5 coz the prequels basic plotline was developed during 5's making
Sounds legit.
I thought it was going to say just the empire strikes back instead of episode 5 The empire strikes back
@Rylore1979 I wonder, if the other movies were not planned, how come Vader did survive in the end of "A New Hope"?
They changed the ending...
Sequels were ALWAYS planned by Lucas. I'm not a big fan of him anymore, but he did not lie about this. Francis Coppola even mentioned (many times) that Lucas kept going on and on about keeping the rights to any sequels while filming Star Wars. Coppola would often tell him to just finish the first one, and stop worrying about it. So did Steven Speilberg. This is well documented. Are the ALL LIARS Rylore1979??
agfagaevart Even if you are right, one things for certain. George Lucas was telling a HUGE LIE when he said that he already had the scripts planned for all six movies back in 1977. In one of the deleted scenes from the original Star Wars, one of the X-Wing pilots tells Luke: "I knew your father when I was just a boy." Lmfao, solid proof that he did not even have Empire ready back then.
ChrisIsONLINE
You just proved he wasn't lying. You said he had scripts PLANNED! I've seen rough drafts of his PLANNED scripts in JW Rinzler's book. You dont have to believe me, just read it!
Is that why he didn't come up with Vader is Luke's father until ESB began development?
ChrisIsONLINE
I am right; Just because he decided to make Darth Luke's father during filming of Empire means nothing. He decided to kill off Ben while filming Star Wars. So? You can plan to do something without know all the exact details of how or what you will end up doing. And you can make changes along the way. This happens all the time in the movie business. Do you know how many drafts of the Empire script were written?? Read Rinzler's book. Watch the BBC Omnibus documentary about Lucas inwhich Francis Ford Coppola says what I mentioned above. Don't believe if you wish. It is STILL TRUE.
2006 Bonus DVD?
Wait, so the original crawl had the episode 5 in the title? What’s going on here?
Yeah, it had "Episode V" in the crawl. This was because they were planning on making Episode 6 after it and then work on the Prequels years later
@@VideoTube2016 do not forget that A New Hope re release in 1981.
@@rishin7852 Yes, I know. I'm talking about episode V though :)
Funny, when I saw this on USA years ago, the Star Wars logo looked like it was bunched up.
Guys it's just when a new hope came out it did not say a new hope when the emipre strikes back came out it said the title same with return of the Jedi in 1997 a new hope began to say its title
No
The only thing I didn't like was that they're just going to build another death star. They couldn't think of something else?
A long galaxy ago in a time far, far away....
*A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away....
People be like WTF, what year is it? when did the the others cane out?
Back when each movie had its own rendition of the main theme instead of reusing the same one from Phantom Menace >:[
i'd rather they used the ones from the prequels.
I too miss when they each had their own unique style of the theme.
Breathtaking battle scenes, had the heroes actually lose for once, great romance and of course, the classic "I am your father" twist. Even though Revenge is my favorite, I perfectly understand why everyone considers Empire top of the ladder in Star Wars media, Even with 2003 Clone Wars and Knights of the Old Republic already proving to be worthy contenders for the title.
Still the best Star Wars film of all time
It still said episode V?
Yeah. When Episode IV re-released a year later it was changed to Episode IV: A New Hope.
Isn't it the same?
Who is here for the force awakens
Lol, nobody responds your question hahaha
Force awakens was great
@@andreiefectivuatafac1966 TFA was the same as the og SW but with boring characters
@@penske_material i disagree, but whatever
@@andreiefectivuatafac1966 I understand that you probably disagree with the characters being boring. But the plot is the same.
I like this movie!
if it was 2015 this would be considered sexist
+Phil Burkhill Uh...how?
+sunshinefludd Princess Leia needing rescued, I guess. Idk lol.
She wouldn't have been able to get off the death star herself. They all worked as a team to escape.
"episode V" here may suggest that prequels have been planned
This isn't even the original crawl. The original theatrical crawl only had the Star Wars logo and continued straight to the text.
Nope, that's the first movie. Empire was always subtitled as Episode V from 1980.
@@ziongarner4485 Really??? Damn, lol, mb, I just did some research and found out it was labeled like that yesterday. Thanks for reminding me lol.
@@waterfall2177 And the original movie was re-labeled "Episode IV A New Hope" in 1981 when it was re-released in theaters.
And was it all just because Lucas only got to watch Flash Gordon from Episode 4 when he was a small kid and then the earlier ones when he was in his twenties? 😂
i can't see the stars
I can
They're at war
William Stone ha...I get it (slowly claps)
not exactly a hard joke to get
This is the same title crawl as ‘Super Star Wars’ for the ‘Super Nintendo Entertainment System’ (a.k.a the SNES)
Can someone put the Imperial March theme over this instead of the Star Wars theme, like in the old Tie Fighter game?
I want to watch how the original Star Wars was meant to be seen from my childhood in the 80's. I'm tired of watching the special editions. They better upload or release the theatrical versions of Star Wars on blu ray.
Mike D Well now it's possible to get the theatrical version
Why did george decide to call it “episode v” tho? The prequels weren’t even existent then
Because at this point the series was a success, so he knew he could/would do prequels in the future.
Just because Eps. 1-3 had not yet been made does not mean this is not Episode 5 in a 6 part movie series.
I thought they started adding episodes in the 90s
The only one it was "added" to was the original movie on its re-release in 1981 (Episode IV A New Hope).
soooo goooooddddd
Star Wars
0:09 I liked the original theatrical version of Star Wars.
It on Disney Plus
this is not the original, it says episode V
+Arnav Ranade it is original
It is the original. Look it up.
When this scene was loaded with anticipation. Now you go to the theater, watch a title crawl for the following one and go "meh"....
Sad but true.
音製が途切れ途切れになります😢😮
At that time did Lucas know he was going to make another 3 movies that happen before the other 2 he made?
Yeah, he did. There are interviews with the actors before the release of Episode V where they talk about what George was thinking with the prequels.
Yes, but the prequels required more technology and stuff that didn't exist in the 80's, so he did the 3 last movies and waited some years to do the prequels.
Happy star wars day !