A protagonist (from Ancient Greek πρωταγωνιστής prōtagōnistḗs 'one who plays the first part, chief actor') is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot , primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a story contains a subplot , or is a narrative made up of several stories, then each subplot may have its own protagonist.
163-684: Legends Jedi ( / ˈ dʒ ɛ d aɪ / ), Jedi Knights , or collectively the Jedi Order are fictional characters, and often protagonists , featured in many works within the Star Wars franchise. Working symbiotically alongside the Old Galactic Republic , the Jedi Order is depicted as a religious, academic, meritocratic , and military-auxiliary (peacekeeping) organization whose origin dates back thousands of years before
326-429: A monastic organization well-trained in the martial arts , who cooperate intimately with the galactic government and work towards bringing "peace into the galaxy by being ambassadors and troubleshooters", according to Lucas. Jedi characters investigate certain crimes ranging from high-profile murder to political corruption, act as diplomats between powerful interplanetary groups, protect the highest government officials of
489-526: A Buddhist monk who happened to be very good at fighting". As depicted in the canon , the Jedi study and utilize the Force in order to help and protect those in need. The Jedi members, known as Jedi Knights, respect all life by defending and protecting those who cannot do it for themselves, striving for peaceful and non-combative solutions to any altercations they encounter and fighting only in self-defense and for
652-617: A Force Projection, allowing the Resistance to escape. When Rey learned of her lineage and exiled herself on Ahch-To out of fear of turning to the dark side, Luke appeared before her as a Force spirit and encouraged her to face the Emperor. Along with the spirits of other past Jedi, he then empowered Rey during her final confrontation with Sidious, which marked the definitive defeat of the Sith. Later, he and Leia gave Rey their blessings to adopt
815-479: A Force spirit. In Star Wars: The Force Awakens , Obi-Wan's voice can briefly be heard just after Rey 's force vision when she came into contact with Anakin's lightsaber. In Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker , Obi-Wan appears as a disembodied voice alongside other past Jedi, empowering Rey to face a rejuvenated Darth Sidious. Anakin Skywalker was a human Jedi Knight, one of the main protagonists of
978-482: A Jedi named Kanan Jarrus survived the purge; the latter trains a new apprentice, Ezra Bridger . The series also reveals that, following the start of the purge with Order 66, Sidious commissioned the Inquisitorius, a group of former Jedi who had turned to the dark side for various reasons, to aid Darth Vader in hunting down the remaining Jedi. The Clone Wars spinoff series Star Wars: The Bad Batch follows
1141-453: A Pretty (how) Town , Filmmaker and 6-18-67 . He was passionate and interested in camerawork and editing, defining himself as a filmmaker as opposed to being a director, and he loved making abstract visual films that created emotions purely through non-narrative structures. In 1967, Lucas re-enrolled as a USC graduate student in film production. He began working under movie and logo designer Saul Bass and film editor Verna Fields for
1304-567: A Thousand Faces (1949), directly influenced Lucas, and was what drove him to create the 'modern myth' of Star Wars . Lucas explained that the Jedi are trained, allowed and expected to love people (even their enemies, the Sith), but they are not to form attachments because attachment leads to the dark side of the Force. When one has, gets or wants a person or experience and attaches to them, one becomes afraid to lose them. The fear of loss feeds into greed, wanting to keep things, thus, an attached person
1467-688: A clique of film students known as The Dirty Dozen . He also became good friends with fellow acclaimed student filmmaker and future Indiana Jones collaborator, Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese . A group of friends, which included Chris Lewis and Don Glut , started the Clean Cut Cinema Club. Lucas, Kleiser and Lewis then formed a short-lived production company called Sunrise Productions with offices on Sunset Boulevard. There they would make up stage names for themselves, Lucas calling himself Lucas Beaumont. Their only project would be
1630-408: A duel. He communes with Kenobi before returning to the Force. In Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker , he appears as a disembodied voice alongside other past Jedi, empowering Rey to face a rejuvenated Darth Sidious. Obi-Wan Kenobi was a human Jedi Master who trained Anakin Skywalker, at the behest of his deceased master Qui-Gon Jinn, and later Anakin's son Luke Skywalker, making him one of
1793-804: A key supporter in the creation of the federal E-Rate program to provide broadband funding to schools and libraries, and the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art , a forthcoming art museum in Los Angeles developed with his wife, Mellody Hobson . Lucas was born and raised in Modesto, California , the son of Dorothy Ellinore Lucas (née Bomberger) and George Walton Lucas Sr., and is of German, Swiss-German, English, Scottish, and distant Dutch and French descent. His family attended Disneyland during its opening week in July 1955, and Lucas would remain enthusiastic about
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#17327656490491956-688: A leader of the Rebel Alliance . As seen in The Rise of Skywalker , Leia began training as a Jedi under her brother shortly after Return of the Jedi , but quit her training when she had a vision that it would result in the death of her yet to be born son. Decades later, while leading the Resistance against the First Order , Leia also briefly mentored Rey in the ways of the Force, despite her limited knowledge about it. Ultimately, Leia gave her life to redeem her son, Ben Solo , who had turned to
2119-553: A list of Force-sensitive children, which could be used to rebuild the Jedi Order. Once their mission was completed, Cal decided to destroy the Holocron, believing it to be better for those children to discover their own destinies. Kanan Jarrus (born Caleb Dume) was a human Jedi Padawan who fought for the Rebellion during its formation. First introduced as a main character of the animated television series Star Wars Rebels , Jarrus
2282-554: A millionaire by the age of 30. He attended Modesto Junior College , where he studied anthropology , sociology, and literature, amongst other subjects. He also began shooting with an 8 mm camera, including filming car races. At this time, Lucas became interested in Canyon Cinema : screenings of underground , avant-garde 16 mm filmmakers like Jordan Belson , Stan Brakhage and Bruce Conner . Lucas and childhood friend John Plummer also saw classic European films of
2445-464: A producer of the Indiana Jones films, had been appointed as co-chair of Lucasfilm Ltd. It was reported that Kennedy would work alongside Lucas, who would remain chief executive and serve as co-chairman for at least one year, after which she would succeed him as the company's sole leader. With the sale of Lucasfilm to Disney, Lucas is currently Disney's second-largest single shareholder, after
2608-522: A protagonist are found in Ancient Greece . At first, dramatic performances involved merely dancing and recitation by the chorus. Then in Poetics , Aristotle describes how a poet named Thespis introduced the idea of one actor stepping out and engaging in a dialogue with the chorus. This was the invention of tragedy, and occurred about 536 B.C. Then the poet Aeschylus , in his plays, introduced
2771-583: A rejuvenated Darth Sidious. Ezra Bridger is a human Jedi Padawan who was born on the planet Lothal on the same day the Galactic Empire was established. He witnessed many injustices of the Imperial occupation of his homeworld for much of his childhood and was separated from his parents from a very early age. He was able to survive alone using street smarts and skills but was discovered by Kanan Jarrus to have potential Force sensitivity after he encounters
2934-408: A second actor, inventing the idea of dialogue between two characters. Sophocles then wrote plays that included a third actor. A description of the protagonist's origin cited that during the early period of Greek drama, the protagonist served as the author, the director, and the actor and that these roles were only separated and allocated to different individuals later. There is also a claim that
3097-470: A success. Lucas then created his own company, Lucasfilm, Ltd. , and directed the successful American Graffiti (1973). Lucas then set his sights on adapting Flash Gordon , an adventure serial from his childhood that he fondly remembered. 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. It
3260-542: A tree; Lucas's seatbelt had snapped, ejecting him and thereby saving his life. However, his lungs were bruised from severe hemorrhaging and he required emergency medical treatment. This incident caused him to lose interest in racing as a career, but also inspired him to pursue his other interests. Lucas's father owned a stationery store, and had wanted George to work for him when he turned 18. Lucas had been planning to go to art school, but his father said he wouldn't pay for it. Lucas declared upon leaving home that he would be
3423-535: A troubled production but was a surprise hit, becoming the highest-grossing film at the time , winning six Academy Awards and sparking a cultural phenomenon . Lucas produced and co-wrote the sequels The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983). With director Steven Spielberg , he created, produced, and co-wrote Indiana Jones films Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), The Temple of Doom (1984), The Last Crusade (1989) and The Kingdom of
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#17327656490493586-540: A very good eye, and he thought visually," he recalled. At Plummer's recommendation, Lucas then transferred to the University of Southern California (USC) School of Cinematic Arts . USC was one of the earliest universities to have a school devoted to motion picture film . During the years at USC, Lucas shared a dorm room with Randal Kleiser . Along with classmates such as Walter Murch , Caleb Deschanel , Hal Barwood , John Milius and Matthew Robbins , they became
3749-467: A war. Though many people equate protagonists with the term hero and possessing heroic qualities, it is not necessary, as even villainous characters can be protagonists. For example Michael Corleone from The Godfather (1972–1990) film series (1978–1983). In some cases, the protagonist is not a human: in Richard Adams ' novel Watership Down , a group of anthropomorphised rabbits, led by
3912-600: A warehouse in Van Nuys, California . After seeing the map for the location was zoned as light industrial , Lucas named the group Industrial Light and Magic, which became the Special Visual Effects department on Star Wars . Alongside Dykstra, other leading members of the original ILM team were Ken Ralston , Richard Edlund , Dennis Muren , Robert Blalack , Joe Johnston , Phil Tippett , Steve Gawley , Lorne Peterson and Paul Huston. By June 2013, Lucas
4075-536: Is considered to be one of the most significant figures of the 20th-century New Hollywood movement, and a pioneer of the modern blockbuster . Despite this, he has remained an independent filmmaker away from Hollywood for most of his career. After graduating from the University of Southern California in 1967, Lucas moved to San Francisco and co-founded American Zoetrope with filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola . He wrote and directed THX 1138 (1971), based on his student short Electronic Labyrinth: THX 1138 4EB , which
4238-503: Is derived from "Jedha," a planet that was once home to a Jedi temple and was a source of kyber crystals. Kyber crystals are used to power lightsabers and were considered sacred by the Jedi Order. In his book The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film , J.W. Rinzler notes that Lucas originally considered using the term "Jedidiah" for his knights, but ultimately settled on "jedi." Rinzler also suggests that
4401-496: Is renamed Kylo Ren and destroys all that Luke built. After Kylo's fall and the destruction of the New Jedi Order, Luke goes into a self-imposed exile on Ahch-To , believing himself and the Jedi to be a negative influence on the galaxy. In the sequel The Last Jedi , the scavenger Rey ( Daisy Ridley ) discovers Luke on Ahch-To and convinces him to train her in the ways of the Force. During her training, Luke explains that
4564-407: Is selfish and unable to let go. The fear of loss turns into anger, which will lead to hate, and hate will lead into suffering, mostly on the part of the one who is selfish, because then one will spend their lives being afraid rather than actually living. The light side is focused on compassion and giving; thus it is love, and the opposite of attachment – it is everlasting joy, devoid of fear of loss and
4727-593: The Clone Wars series, the Jedi believed romantic feelings are natural and as such, they did not prohibit them, but for a Jedi Knight, it was essential to make the right choice for the Order and not neglect their Jedi duties in the favor of their beloved, even if that would mean the end of the relationship. This proves problematic when Anakin, now a young adult ( Hayden Christensen ), falls in love with Padmé Amidala ( Natalie Portman ). The Clone Wars , first spoken of in
4890-544: The Star Wars Rebels episode "Path of the Jedi" , Kanan Jarrus stated: There were around 10,000 Jedi Knights defending the galaxy. Now, we are few. But in those days, we had small outposts, temples spread throughout the stars. The Empire sought out these temples and destroyed many of them... Yoda was a wise, experienced, and powerful Grand Master of the Jedi of an unknown species and the oldest known prophet in existence (having lived at least 900 years), considered
5053-466: The Indiana Jones television prequel spinoff The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (1992–93). There were unsuccessful projects, however, including More American Graffiti (1979), Willard Huyck 's Howard the Duck (1986), which was the biggest flop of Lucas's career, Coppola's Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988) and Radioland Murders (1994) directed by Mel Smith . The animation studio Pixar
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5216-528: The National Film Board of Canada like Arthur Lipsett 's 21-87 , cameraman Jean-Claude Labrecque 's cinéma vérité 60 Cycles , the work of Norman McLaren and the documentaries of Claude Jutra . Lucas fell madly in love with pure cinema and quickly became prolific at making 16 mm nonstory noncharacter visual tone poems and cinéma vérité with such titles as Look at Life , Herbie , 1:42.08 , The Emperor , Anyone Lived in
5379-808: The National Mall in Washington, D.C., to commemorate American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. On September 19, 2006, the University of Southern California announced that Lucas had donated $ 175–180 million to his alma mater to expand the film school. It is the largest single donation to USC and the largest gift to a film school anywhere. Previous donations led to the already-existing George Lucas Instructional Building and Marcia Lucas Post-Production building. In 2013, Lucas and his wife Mellody Hobson donated $ 25 million to
5542-537: The San Francisco Bay Area and co-founded the studio American Zoetrope with Coppola, hoping to create a liberating environment for filmmakers to direct outside the perceived oppressive control of the Hollywood studio system . Coppola thought Lucas's Electronic Labyrinth could be adapted into his first full-length feature film, which was produced by American Zoetrope as THX 1138 , but was not
5705-620: The United States Air Force as an officer, but he was immediately turned down because of his numerous speeding tickets. He was later drafted by the United States Army for military service in Vietnam , but he was exempted from service after medical tests showed he had diabetes , the disease that killed his paternal grandfather. Lucas saw many inspiring films in class, particularly the visual films coming out of
5868-621: The United States House of Representatives subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet as the head of his Foundation to advocate for a free wireless broadband educational network. In 2012, Lucas sold Lucasfilm to The Walt Disney Company for a reported sum of $ 4.05 billion. It was widely reported at the time that Lucas intended to give the majority of the proceeds from the sale to charity. A spokesperson for Lucasfilm said: "George Lucas has expressed his intention, in
6031-513: The United States Information Agency , where he met his future wife Marcia Griffin . Working as a teaching instructor for a class of U.S. Navy students who were being taught documentary cinematography, Lucas directed the short film Electronic Labyrinth: THX 1138 4EB , which won first prize at the 1967–68 National Student film festival. Lucas was awarded a student scholarship by Warner Bros. to observe and work on
6194-832: The highest-grossing film of all time , displaced five years later by Spielberg's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial . After the success of American Graffiti and prior to the beginning of filming on Star Wars , Lucas was encouraged to renegotiate for a higher fee for writing and directing Star Wars than the US$ 150,000 agreed. He declined to do so, instead negotiating for advantage in some of the as-yet-unspecified parts of his contract with Fox, in particular, ownership of licensing and merchandising rights (for novelizations , clothing, toys, etc.) and contractual arrangements for sequels. Lucasfilm has earned hundreds of millions of dollars from licensed games, toys, and collectibles created for
6357-460: The original trilogy , Return of the Jedi , ends with Luke redeeming Vader and helping to destroy the Empire, thus fulfilling his destiny as a Jedi. The two last Jedi Masters die during the events of the films, after which they return as Force spirits to help Luke. Now that they're extinct, the Jedi are romanticized, deified. But if you strip away the myth and look at their deeds, the legacy of
6520-554: The " Chosen One " of a Jedi prophecy, destined to bring balance to the Force. At the end of The Phantom Menace , following Qui-Gon's death at the hands of Darth Maul , Anakin is paired with his apprentice, the young Obi-Wan Kenobi ( Ewan McGregor ), who promises to train him. The sequel, Episode II: Attack of the Clones , establishes that the Jedi forswear attachments, being in the same category of possession and striving to cultivate compassion, unconditional love instead. As revealed in
6683-425: The "Special Editions". The trilogy received further modifications and restorations for DVD releases in 2004, Blu-ray releases in 2011 and 4K releases released in 2019. Additionally, Lucas released a director's cut of THX 1138 in 2004, with the film re-cut and containing a number of CGI additions. The first Star Wars prequel was finished and released in 1999 as Episode I – The Phantom Menace , which would be
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6846-486: The "good guys" of the narrative. Examples include DC Comics' Superman (hero) and Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games (heroine). An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero) or antiheroine is a main character in a story who lacks conventional heroic qualities and attributes such as idealism, courage, and morality. Examples include Holden Caulfield from The Catcher in the Rye , Scarlett O'Hara from Gone With
7009-471: The "moral authority to do that" since they are "the most moral of anybody in the galaxy". Throughout the franchise, Jedi are often recognizable by their robes and tunics in various shades of brown and their use of lightsabers : sword-like weapons with a colorful blade made of plasma . Along with New Age elements, Lucas developed the Jedi creed by adopting certain elements from Eastern religions —namely Buddhism and potentially Taoism . In that same vein,
7172-452: The "secret sauce" of his movies. Lucas is the wealthiest film celebrity in the world. His personal net worth is estimated to be between $ 7.5–9.4 billion. Lucas has pledged to give half of his fortune to charity as part of an effort called The Giving Pledge led by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett to persuade America's richest individuals to donate their financial wealth to charities. In 1991, The George Lucas Educational Foundation
7335-628: The 1978 Star Wars Holiday Special for 20th Century Fox Television . That year, Lucas hired Los Angeles-based real-estate specialist Charles Weber to manage the company, telling him that he could keep the job as long as he made money. Lucas wanted the focus of the company to be making independent films, but the company gradually became enlarged from five employees to almost 100, increasing in middle management and running up costs. In 1980, after Weber asked Lucas for fifty million dollars to invest in other companies and suggested that they sell Skywalker Ranch to do so, Lucas fired Weber and had to let half of
7498-496: The 2023 sequel, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor , it is revealed that mercenary Bode Akuna was also a survivor of Order 66. In the limited series Obi-Wan Kenobi , the Great Jedi Purge is depicted in a flashback in which Reva Sevander, future Inquisitor called Third Sister, escapes from the clones during the night of Order 66. The exact size of the pre-purge Jedi's membership and operations are never specified. However, in
7661-566: The 50-year-old but still toddler Grogu was sought by a remnant of the Galactic Empire due to his connection to the Force, but was found and adopted by the Mandalorian bounty hunter Din Djarin , who sought to reunite him with the Jedi. When Grogu was eventually captured by Moff Gideon's Imperial remnant, Djarin mounted a rescue, which would have been unsuccessful if not for the arrival of Luke Skywalker (whom Grogu had previously contacted through
7824-475: The CGI film Strange Magic , his first musical. The film was produced at Skywalker Ranch . Gary Rydstrom directed the movie. At the same time the sequel trilogy was announced, a fifth installment of the Indiana Jones series also entered pre-development phase with Harrison Ford and Steven Spielberg set to return. Lucas originally did not specify whether the selling of Lucasfilm would affect his involvement with
7987-835: The Chicago-based not-for-profit After School Matters, of which Hobson is the chair. On April 15, 2016, it was reported that Lucas had donated between $ 501,000 and $ 1 million through the Lucas Family Foundation (now the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation) to the Obama Foundation , which is charged with overseeing the construction of the Barack Obama Presidential Center on Chicago's South Side . In 2021, Lucas and his wife Mellody Hobson made
8150-518: The Chosen One. In Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker , Anakin appears as a disembodied voice alongside other past Jedi, empowering Rey to face a rejuvenated Sidious. Ahsoka Tano is a Togruta Jedi Padawan discovered on her homeworld of Shili by Jedi Master Plo Koon. Plo brought her to Coruscant to train as a Jedi. She eventually became the Padawan learner of Anakin Skywalker during
8313-539: The Clone Wars, Jedi Master Dooku left the Jedi Order as a result of differences with his fellow Jedi, becoming the 20th Jedi Master in the history of the Order to do so. To showcase the failures of the Jedi they created statues of the fallen Jedi and placed them in the Jedi Temple Archives. The animated television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars depicts the battles of the Clone Wars, focusing on
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#17327656490498476-750: The Clone Wars. Among many campaigns, Ahsoka found herself advising rebels on the planet Onderon, including Steela and Saw Gerrera, in their fight against the Confederacy. These rebels would eventually form part of the basis of the Alliance for the Restoration of the Republic, a relationship that would later prove beneficial to her. She was accused of bombing the hangar at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant before clearing her name with Anakin's help. However,
8639-481: The Clones (2002) and Revenge of the Sith (2005). He last collaborated on the CGI-animated movie and television series of the same name, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008–2014, 2020), the war film Red Tails (2012) and the CGI film Strange Magic (2015). Lucas is also known for his collaboration with composer John Williams , who was recommended to him by Spielberg, and with whom he has worked for all
8802-406: The Clones . The final prequel, Episode III – Revenge of the Sith , began production in 2002 and was released in 2005. Numerous older fans and critics at the time considered the prequels more mixed compared to the original trilogy, though they were box office successes and popular with younger fans. In 2004, Lucas reflected that his transition from independent to corporate filmmaker mirrored
8965-474: The Clones and Revenge of the Sith , and featured the last Star Wars stories in which Lucas was involved in a major way. In 2012, Lucas self-funded and served as executive producer for Red Tails , a war film based on the exploits of the Tuskegee Airmen during World War II . He also took over directing of reshoots while director Anthony Hemingway worked on other projects. I'm moving away from
9128-535: The Crystal Skull (2008), and served as an executive producer, with a cursory involvement in pre and post-production, on The Dial of Destiny (2023). In 1997, Lucas re-released the original Star Wars trilogy as part of a Special Edition featuring several modifications; home media versions with further changes were released in 2004 and 2011. He returned to directing with a Star Wars prequel trilogy comprising The Phantom Menace (1999), Attack of
9291-407: The Force to control and command animals, a skill that proved more useful several times during his service in the Rebellion. Bridger later went missing in action during the battle to liberate Lothal from Imperial occupation, where he successfully defeated Grand Admiral Thrawn , regarded by many as the Empire's best tactician. Luke Skywalker was a human Jedi Knight (later Master) and the protagonist of
9454-528: The Force). With Djarin's approval, Luke took Grogu with him so that the child could be trained as a Jedi. Though Grogu briefly trained with Luke, he showed signs of not being fully committed to the Jedi path and wishing to be with Djarin instead, causing Luke to doubt his abilities as a teacher, as seen in The Book of Boba Fett . After speaking with Ahsoka Tano, Luke decided to let Grogu choose his own destiny, and
9617-411: The Force. With peace and justice restored to the galaxy, Rey lives on to start the Jedi Order again. In a deleted scene from Attack of the Clones , the "Lost Twenty" is the name given to a group of Jedi Masters—numbering twenty in total—who left the Jedi Order throughout its history. The first 12 of this Lost Twenty became "Dark Jedi" who eventually founded the first Sith Empire. In the years preceding
9780-421: The Imperial era, he lived on Bracca, working as a scrapyard rigger and hiding his Force powers. While scrapping a freighter, an accident forced Cal to reveal his Force abilities to save a co-worker, exposing him to the Empire, who dispatched two Inquisitors to hunt him down. On the run, Cal was rescued by Cere Junda, a Jedi Knight also in hiding, and worked with her and other allies to find a Jedi Holocron containing
9943-580: The Jedi Council's response during the ordeal soured her faith in the Order, and she left the Order to forge her own path in the galaxy. She briefly returned in the service of the Republic during the final days of the Clone Wars, when she led part of the 501st Clone Legion in the siege of Mandalore to capture the Sith Lord Darth Maul , who attempted to warn her that Anakin would soon fall to the dark side. Shortly after capturing Maul, Ahsoka
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#173276564904910106-478: The Jedi Order's last hope. Darth Vader ( David Prowse / James Earl Jones ) is also established as the Jedi's main enemy. By the end of the film, which depicts the battle of Yavin , Luke is on the path to becoming a Jedi. In the sequel, The Empire Strikes Back , Luke receives Jedi training from the elderly (and only surviving) Jedi Master Yoda ( Frank Oz ), even as he learns that Vader is, in fact, his father, former Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker . The third film in
10269-460: The Jedi and clone troopers they lead against the Separatists and its Sith leaders. The feature-film pilot reveals that Anakin trained an apprentice, Ahsoka Tano , between Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith . Later arcs explore the foundations of Order 66 and Darth Sidious' manipulation of the Jedi Order. The animated television series Star Wars Rebels reveals that Ahsoka and
10432-410: The Jedi creed focuses on compassion for others, mindfulness, non-attachment, and meditation, which are all characteristics of what Jedi characters call the "light side" of the Force. Furthermore, the Jedi view fear to be the root of suffering: fear leading to anger, anger leading to hate, and hate leading to suffering. The Jedi warn that an excess of these negative emotions can turn practitioners away from
10595-413: The Jedi is failure. Hypocrisy, hubris. [...] At the height of their powers, they allowed Darth Sidious to rise, create the Empire, and wipe them out. In The Force Awakens , the first film in the sequel trilogy, it is revealed that Luke had attempted to rebuild the Jedi Order, but failed when his nephew Ben Solo ( Adam Driver ) fell to the dark side, lured by the mysterious Snoke ( Andy Serkis ). Ben
10758-571: The Jedi, Raiders of the Lost Ark , Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom , and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ). After Lucas sold Lucasfilm to Disney, Williams stayed on board with the franchise, and continued to score the remaining three films of the " Skywalker Saga " ( The Force Awakens , The Last Jedi , and The Rise of Skywalker , for which he received a further three Oscar nominations), after which he announced his "retirement" from
10921-400: The Los Angeles staff go. By the same year, the corporate subsidiary had been discontinued and its business was absorbed into the various divisions of Lucasfilm. Lucas founded Industrial Light & Magic in 1975, he wanted his 1977 film Star Wars to include visual effects that had never been seen on film before. After discovering that the in-house effects department at 20th Century Fox
11084-611: The Main Title Theme, the Force Theme (less commonly referred to as Obi Wan Kenobi's Theme), the Rebel Alliance Theme and Princess Leia's Theme (all introduced in this film) repeatedly. Subsequent films also added to the catalog of themes for different characters, factions, and locations. The score was released to critical acclaim and won Williams his third Academy Award for Best Original Score . The score
11247-610: The Old Republic. Before the dark times, before the Empire. The Jedi are first introduced in the 1977 motion picture Star Wars as an order of warrior monks who serve as "the guardians of peace and justice in the galaxy " and embrace the mystical Force. Obi-Wan Kenobi ( Alec Guinness ) explains that the Galactic Empire has all but exterminated the Jedi, and seeks to train Luke Skywalker ( Mark Hamill ) to be
11410-561: The Republic, track down fugitives, and are promoted as leaders in the Republic's army during the Clone Wars . Still, their creed demands that they defend and protect all life and use their power only for knowledge and defense. With the rise of the Sith Lord Darth Sidious and the Galactic Empire , the Jedi Order is outlawed and most of its members killed in the ensuing political purge . Later efforts are made to revive
11573-407: The Skywalker surname and continue their family's legacy. Leia Organa was the daughter of Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala, the twin sister of Luke Skywalker, and one of the main characters of the original and sequel trilogies. While Force-sensitive, she didn't become aware of her connection to the Force or her lineage until much later in life, instead focusing on a career as a senator and, secretly,
11736-573: The Spectres for the first time. After discovering how much of a team player he could be during a rescue operation, they recruited Bridger, who began training him in the ways of the Jedi under Jarrus, himself still a Jedi Padawan. Bridger took a long time learning how to wield a lightsaber and use it to deflect blaster bolts, modifying his first one to fire stun blasts in the interim. He was not well skilled in lightsaber duels against Inquisitors and Darth Vader, but later discovered his unique ability to use
11899-706: The Unknown Regions. Ahsoka is one of the few Jedi to survive past the Imperial era and into the New Republic era. After the fall of the Empire, Ahsoka took on Sabine Wren as her apprentice. In Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker , Ahsoka appears as only a voice alongside other past Jedi, empowering Rey to face a rejuvenated Darth Sidious. Cal Kestis was a human Jedi Padawan and the main protagonist of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order . Trained by Jaro Tapal, Cal witnessed his master's death during Order 66, which he himself barely managed to survive. During
12062-480: The Wind , Jay Gatsby from The Great Gatsby , and Walter White from Breaking Bad . A tragic hero is the protagonist of a tragedy. Examples include Oedipus from Oedipus Rex and Prince Hamlet from Shakespeare's Hamlet . The protagonist is not always conventionally good. Contrasting the hero protagonist, a villain protagonist is a protagonist who is a villain , driving the story forward regardless of
12225-432: The ability to move objects with the mind , perform incredible feats of strength , and connect to certain people's thoughts . As Star Wars creator George Lucas explains, the Jedi are "warrior-monks who keep peace in the universe", avoiding the use of violence except as a last resort, with a mission to "use their power to keep the governments of all the planets in line, so that they don't do terrible things". The Jedi have
12388-433: The audience is invested in that story. Tybalt, as an antagonist, opposes Romeo and attempts to thwart the relationship. In Shakespeare's play Hamlet , Prince Hamlet, who seeks revenge for the murder of his father, is the protagonist. The antagonist is the character who most opposes Hamlet, Claudius (though, in many ways, Hamlet is his own antagonist). Sometimes, a work will have a false protagonist , who may seem to be
12551-404: The business ... From the company, from all this kind of stuff. —George Lucas on his future career plans In January 2012, Lucas announced his retirement from producing large blockbuster films, and instead re-focusing his career on smaller, independently budgeted features. In June 2012, it was announced that producer Kathleen Kennedy , a long-term collaborator with Steven Spielberg and
12714-412: The command Order 66: Operation Knightfall . This resulted in the clone troopers being forcibly brainwashed into viewing their Jedi generals as traitors to the Republic and subsequently executing them. Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker led the 501st Legion to carry out "Operation Knightfall" against the Jedi Temple, burning and slaughtering all Jedi within, including Temple-Defender Shaak Ti. Sidious deceived
12877-447: The company. The sale reflected Lucas's desire to stop the cash flow losses from his seven-year research projects associated with new entertainment technology tools, as well as his company's new focus on creating entertainment rather than tools. As of June 1983, Lucas was worth $ 60 million, but he met cash-flow difficulties following his divorce that year, concurrent with the sudden dropoff in revenues from Star Wars licenses following
13040-639: The creative differences between him and the producers of The Force Awakens . Lucas went on to say that he needed to support the company and its employees who were going to suffer financially. Lucas described the previous six Star Wars films as his "children" and defended his vision for them, while criticizing The Force Awakens for having a "retro feel", saying: "I worked very hard to make them completely different, with different planets, with different spaceships – you know, to make it new." Lucas also drew some criticism and subsequently apologized for his remark likening Disney to "white slavers". In 2015, Lucas wrote
13203-415: The creator and executive producer for a second Star Wars animated series on Cartoon Network, Star Wars: The Clone Wars which premiered with a feature film of the same name before airing its first episode. The supervising director for this animated series was Dave Filoni , who was chosen by Lucas and closely collaborated with him on its development. This series bridged the events between Attack of
13366-575: The dark side and became the Sith Lord Darth Tyranus . He is one of the main antagonists of the prequel trilogy. He led the war against the Jedi and the Republic until his demise aboard General Grievous' ship in the Battle of Coruscant at the hands of Anakin Skywalker. Qui-Gon Jinn was a wise and powerful human Jedi Master, who was trained by Count Dooku and mentored Obi-Wan Kenobi. Unlike other, more conservative Jedi, he valued living in
13529-422: The dark side and become his Sith apprentice, Darth Vader. The latter begins helping Sidious hunt down and destroy the Jedi, who are nearly exterminated during the events of Revenge of the Sith ; Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda, and Ahsoka Tano are among a handful of Jedi that avoided the initial purge. As revealed in the Clone Wars series, each of the clones were implanted with chips that Palpatine would activate with
13692-498: The dark side, and became one with the Force. Later, she and Luke gave Rey their blessings to adopt the Skywalker surname and continue their family's legacy. Grogu was a Jedi Initiate of the same species as Yoda who first appeared in The Mandalorian . Raised at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant during the Clone Wars, he was rescued by Jedi Master Kelleran Beq during the Great Jedi Purge and hidden for his own safety. Decades later,
13855-452: The defense of those they protect. By training the mind and the body, the Jedi seek to improve themselves by gaining unfettered access to the Force while also seeking to improve those individuals and groups they come in contact with. Like their evil counterparts, the Sith , the main weapon of the Jedi is the lightsaber. However, according to Lucas, "The Force really doesn't have anything to do with
14018-486: The end of the trilogy. The success of the first Star Wars film also resulted in more attention focused on Lucas, both positive and negative, attracting wealth and fame, but also many people who wanted Lucas's financial backing or just to threaten him. Following the release of the first Star Wars film, Lucas worked extensively as a writer and producer, including on the many Star Wars spinoffs made for film, television and other media. Lucas acted as executive producer for
14181-458: The estate of Steve Jobs . Lucas worked as a creative consultant on the Star Wars sequel trilogy 's first film, The Force Awakens . Lucas's involvement included attending early story meetings; according to Lucas, "I mostly say, 'You can't do this. You can do that.' You know, 'The cars don't have wheels. They fly with antigravity.' There's a million little pieces ... I know all that stuff." Lucas's son Jett told The Guardian that his father
14344-506: The event the deal closes, to donate the majority of the proceeds to his philanthropic endeavors." Lucas also spoke on the matter: "For 41 years, the majority of my time and money has been put into the company. As I start a new chapter in my life, it is gratifying that I have the opportunity to devote more time and resources to philanthropy." In 2005, Lucas gave $ 1 million to help build the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on
14507-408: The events of the first film released in the franchise . The fictional organization has inspired a real-world new religious movement and parody religion : Jediism . Within the Star Wars galaxy , the Jedi are powerful guardians of order and justice, who, through intuition, rigorous training, and intensive self-discipline , are able to wield a supernatural power known as the Force , thus achieving
14670-490: The events of the story and are not as involved within the "main action" of the plot. The supporting protagonist may be telling the story while viewing another character as the main influence of the plot. One example is Nick in The Great Gatsby . Euripides ' play Hippolytus may be considered to have two protagonists, though one at a time. Phaedra is the protagonist of the first half, who dies partway through
14833-471: The evil qualities the main character has. These traits can include being cruel, malicious, and wicked. Examples include Humbert Humbert in Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita and Richard III in the eponymous play by William Shakespeare . When a supporting protagonist appears, the story is told from the perspective of a character who appears to be minor. This character may be more peripheral from
14996-545: The few survivors of Order 66 following the Galactic Republic's transformation into the Galactic Empire, Obi-Wan hid on the desert planet Tatooine , watching over Anakin's son Luke, knowing that he would one day grow to become a Jedi and defeat Vader. In Obi-Wan Kenobi , while Obi-Wan hid on Tatooine , Senator Bail Organa 's daughter, Leia Organa , was captured upon the request of the Third Sister. Obi-Wan
15159-403: The film series into a "Saga". In 1994, Lucas began work on the screenplay of the first prequel, tentatively titled Episode I: The Beginning . In 1997, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Star Wars , Lucas restored the original trilogy and made numerous modifications using newly available digital technology to bring them closer to his original vision. The films were re-released in theaters as
15322-512: The film. In October 2016, Lucas announced his decision to not be involved in the story of the film but would remain an executive producer. In 2016, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story , the first film of a Star Wars anthology series was released. It told the story of the rebels who stole the plans for the Death Star featured in the original Star Wars film, and it was reported that Lucas liked it more than The Force Awakens . The Last Jedi ,
15485-517: The films in both of these franchises. He also produced and wrote a variety of films and television series through Lucasfilm between the 1970s and the 2010s. Lucas is one of history's most financially successful filmmakers . He directed or wrote the story for ten of the 100 highest-grossing movies at the North American box office, adjusted for ticket-price inflation. Through his companies Industrial Light and Magic and Skywalker Sound , Lucas
15648-532: The final film of the sequel trilogy, it is discovered that Darth Sidious created Snoke and has returned from death and has been secretly manipulating events from the Sith world Exegol . In his last attempt to reclaim the galaxy, Sidious unveils the Final Order, a massive fleet of Xyston -class Star Destroyers built by the Sith Eternal . The Emperor offers the Sith fleet to Kylo Ren in exchange for killing
15811-437: The first film Lucas had directed in over two decades. Following the release of the first prequel, Lucas announced that he would also be directing the next two, and began working on Episode II . The first draft of Episode II was completed just weeks before principal photography, and Lucas hired Jonathan Hales , a writer from The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles , to polish it. It was completed and released in 2002 as Attack of
15974-465: The first four Indiana Jones films, which his colleague and good friend Steven Spielberg directed. Craig Barron , who worked at ILM as part of the matte painting department, told Star Wars Insider that Lucas liked to spend time with the department's painters and often spoke of what movies he wanted to make. According to Barron, Lucas had wanted to make a film about Alexander the Great , but this film
16137-432: The franchise. The original Star Wars film went through a tumultuous production, and during editing, Lucas suffered chest pains initially feared to be a heart attack, but actually a fit of hypertension and exhaustion. The effort that Lucas exerted during post-production for the film, and its subsequent sequels, caused strains on his relationship with his wife Marcia Lucas, and was a contributing factor to their divorce at
16300-578: The galaxy together." ". . . a Jedi can feel the Force flowing through him. It [partially] controls your actions, but it also obeys your commands". The prequel trilogy depicts the Jedi in their prime, headquartered at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant , and dealing with the rising presence of the dark side of the Force and the return of the Sith. In Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999), Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn ( Liam Neeson ) discovers nine-year-old Anakin Skywalker ( Jake Lloyd ), whom he believes to be
16463-420: The last remaining Jedi, Rey, who is revealed to be his granddaughter. After the death of Kylo's mother, Leia Organa ( Carrie Fisher ), Kylo returns to the light and reclaims his identity as Ben Solo. At the end of the film, Ben joins Rey as she confronts Sidious. Rey channels the power of the past Jedi to destroy Sidious and the Sith, before dying herself. Ben sacrifices his life to revive Rey and becomes one with
16626-418: The light side of the Force towards the dark side, which embraces passions, aggression, hate, rage, fear, and bitterness as a way of life. The Sith are followers of the dark side and the traditional enemies of the Jedi. While the Sith ultimately seek violent and absolute rule over the galaxy, the Jedi work to protect democracy, harmony, and justice. The Jedi are depicted, in the franchise's Old Republic era, as
16789-472: The lightsaber. Anybody can have a lightsaber. It's just a weapon like a pistol". Qui-Gon Jinn gives an insight into the Force in The Phantom Menace when he tells Anakin: "Your focus determines your reality". And later, he explains: "Midi-chlorians are microscopic lifeforms that reside within all of your cells. And we are symbionts with them. Lifeforms living together for mutual advantage. Without
16952-674: The main characters in the Star Wars franchise. Having fought in the Clone Wars, Obi-Wan proved himself an adept strategist, duelist, and spy, as his leadership style heavily favours subterfuge and misdirection while commanding clone troopers, or wielding the Force. Due to his charisma and persuasion skills, he became known as 'The Negotiator' during the Clone Wars. Obi-Wan best exemplifies the Jedi Code: in spite of Darth Vader 's betrayal and his master ( Qui-Gon Jinn ) being killed by his nemesis, Darth Maul , he never fell into darkness. As one of
17115-441: The making of a film of his choosing. The film he chose after finding the animation department closed down was Finian's Rainbow (1968) which was being directed by Francis Ford Coppola , who was revered among film school students of the time as a cinema graduate who had "made it" in Hollywood. In 1969, Lucas was one of the camera operators on the classic Rolling Stones concert film Gimme Shelter . In 1969, Lucas moved back to
17278-485: The maternal uncle of Ben Solo . After redeeming his father from the dark side of the Force, who died killing his master and the last Sith, Darth Sidious, in order to save Luke, he set out to train a new generation of Jedi to rebuild the Order, only to have them wiped out by Supreme Leader Snoke , a puppet created by a revived Sidious, who also turned Ben to the dark side, adopting the Kylo Ren persona. Skywalker then spent
17441-407: The midi-chlorians, life could not exist and we would have no knowledge of the Force. They continually speak to us, telling us the will of The Force. When you learn to quiet your mind you'll hear them speaking to you". In A New Hope , Obi-Wan Kenobi tells Luke Skywalker: "The Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us, penetrates us, it binds
17604-418: The moment as the best way to embrace the Force. While other Jedi respected him highly, they were frequently puzzled by his beliefs. He refused to take a seat on the Jedi Council, despite him being among the wisest and most powerful of the Jedi. Jinn was both the Jedi to discover the Sith's return after a millennium, upon being attacked by Darth Maul during a mission to protect Queen Padmé Amidala of Naboo , and
17767-538: The museum in California. On January 17, 2017, Lucas announced that an eleven-acre campus with green space and the museum's five-story 300,000 square foot building will be constructed over what was a parking lot in Exposition Park , Los Angeles, California. It is due to be completed in 2025. Lucas was also heavily involved and invested in the scoring process for the original Star Wars soundtrack , which
17930-782: The name for his knights. Kaminski notes that Lucas has cited Jewish mysticism as an inspiration for his work, and that he may have been drawn to the idea of his heroes being beloved protectors. George Lucas acknowledged that the Jedi, Sith , and other Force concepts have been inspired by many sources. These include: knighthood , chivalry , paladinism , samurai bushido , Shaolin Monastery , Feudalism , Hinduism , Qigong , Greek philosophy and mythology , Roman history and mythology , Sufism , Confucianism , Shintō , Buddhism and Taoism , and numerous cinematic precursors. The works of philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche and mythologist Joseph Campbell , especially his book The Hero with
18093-484: The never completed short "Five, Four, Three", a self-referential and self-deprecating mockumentary about the making of a satirical teen beach movie called "Orgy Beach Party". Lucas was deeply influenced by the Filmic Expression course taught at the school by filmmaker Lester Novros which concentrated on the non-narrative elements of Film Form like color, light, movement, space, and time. Another inspiration
18256-536: The next two Star Wars films, commissioning Irvin Kershner to direct The Empire Strikes Back and Richard Marquand to direct Return of the Jedi , while receiving a story credit on the former and sharing a screenwriting credit with Lawrence Kasdan on the latter. Lucas also gave away his screenwriting credit out of great respect for Leigh Brackett for The Empire Strikes Back after her death from cancer. He also acted as story writer and executive producer on
18419-461: The one to find the ability to become a Force spirit after death, though he wasn't capable of having a physical body. Following his death at Darth Maul's hands, Jinn guided both Yoda and Obi-Wan to the ability to become a physical Force spirit after death. Within the Disney+ TV series, Obi-Wan Kenobi , Qui-Gon Jinn appears as a force spirit following Darth Vader 's defeat to Obi-Wan Kenobi in
18582-555: The organization. The word Jedi is said to have been adapted by George Lucas from Japanese 時代劇 ( jidaigeki ) (meaning 'period drama' motion pictures about samurai ), or perhaps inspired by the words Jed (Leader) and Jeddak (King) in the Barsoom series by Edgar Rice Burroughs , a series that Lucas considered adapting to film. According to the Star Wars: Rogue One – The Ultimate Visual Guide , "Jedi" in-universe
18745-429: The original 1977 film, begin with hundreds of Jedi participating in the battle of Geonosis . In Episode III: Revenge of the Sith , Yoda confides to Mace Windu ( Samuel L. Jackson ) that the prophecy of the Chosen One could have been misread. Palpatine ( Ian McDiarmid ), who is revealed to be Darth Sidious, manipulates Anakin's attachment for Padmé and distrust and resentment of the Jedi in order to turn him to
18908-491: The original trilogy. As the last Padawan of Obi-Wan Kenobi, he became an important figure in the Rebel Alliance 's struggle against the Galactic Empire . Luke was heir to a family deeply rooted in the Force, being the twin brother of Rebellion leader Princess Leia Organa of the planet Alderaan , the son of former Queen of Naboo and Republic Senator Padmé Amidala and Jedi turned Sith Lord Darth Vader (Anakin Skywalker), and
19071-472: The pain of loss. "As long as you love other people and treat them kindly, you won't be afraid". Lucas, identifying himself as "Buddhist Methodist" or "Methodist Buddhist" stated that his philosophy of non-attachment , depicted in his movies was influenced by the fact that he was from San Francisco, the "Zen Buddhism capital of the United States". In 2020, he indicated that the Jedi were "designed to be
19234-591: The park. He was interested in comics and science fiction, including television programs such as the Flash Gordon serials. Long before Lucas began making films, he yearned to be a racecar driver, and he spent most of his high school years racing on the underground circuit at fairgrounds and hanging out at garages. On June 12, 1962, a few days before his high school graduation, Lucas was driving his souped-up Autobianchi Bianchina when another driver broadsided him, flipping his car several times before it crashed into
19397-405: The past Jedi allowed Darth Sidious to rise to power. She also discovers several ancient Jedi texts hidden away in a tree. Rey learns the truth about Ben's fall to the dark side and believes herself to be his only chance of redemption. Luke decides to stay on Ahch-To and attempts to burn down the tree with the texts, but cannot bring himself to do so. However, Yoda appears as a Force spirit and burns
19560-538: The people of the Republic that the Jedi were corrupted warmongers responsible for prolonging the Clone Wars, labeling them criminals with bounties placed on them. Darth Vader continued to hunt and kill nearly every surviving Jedi during the early years of the Empire, in what became known as the Great Jedi Purge . For over a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in
19723-435: The planet and Kenobi defeats his former apprentice, allowing Leia to return to her parents. Following this event, Qui-Gon Jinn appears before Kenobi as a force spirit, after years of failed attempts by Obi-Wan to communicate with the deceased Jedi Master. Obi-Wan mentored Luke Skywalker in the Jedi arts, before meeting his demise at the hands of his former apprentice aboard the Death Star , though he continued guiding Luke as
19886-436: The play. Her stepson, the titular Hippolytus, assumes the dominant role in the second half of the play. In Henrik Ibsen 's play The Master Builder , the protagonist is the architect Halvard Solness. The young woman, Hilda Wangel, whose actions lead to the death of Solness, is the antagonist. In Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet , Romeo is the protagonist. He is actively in pursuit of his relationship with Juliet, and
20049-409: The poet did not assign or create the protagonist as well as other terms for actors such as deuteragonist and tritagonist primarily because he only gave actors their appropriate part. However, these actors were assigned their specific areas at the stage with the protagonist always entering from the middle door or that the dwelling of the deuteragonist (second most important character) should be on
20212-468: The prequel trilogy, and the central antagonist of the original trilogy. He is the Chosen One, being born of the Force. He was apprenticed to Obi-Wan Kenobi and proved to be a very gifted duelist and Force user, being appointed to the Jedi High Council at the age of 22. He secretly married Padmé Amidala at the onset of the Clone Wars and has two children, Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa . He
20375-527: The protagonist Hazel, escape their warren after seeing a vision of its destruction, starting a perilous journey to find a new home. George Lucas George Walton Lucas Jr. (born May 14, 1944) is an American filmmaker and philanthropist. He created the Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises and founded Lucasfilm , LucasArts , Industrial Light & Magic and THX . He served as chairman of Lucasfilm before selling it to The Walt Disney Company in 2012. Nominated for four Academy Awards , he
20538-432: The protagonist develop as a result. The term protagonist comes from Ancient Greek πρωταγωνιστής ( prōtagōnistḗs ) 'actor who plays the chief or first part', combined of πρῶτος ( prôtos , 'first') and ἀγωνιστής ( agōnistḗs , 'actor, competitor'), which stems from ἀγών ( agṓn , 'contest') via ἀγωνίζομαι ( agōnízomai , 'I contend for a prize'). The earliest known examples of
20701-510: The protagonist, but then may disappear unexpectedly. The character Marion in Alfred Hitchcock 's film Psycho (1960) is an example. A novel may contain a number of narratives, each with its own protagonist. Alexander Solzhenitsyn 's The First Circle , for example, depicts a variety of characters imprisoned and living in a gulag camp. Leo Tolstoy 's War and Peace depicts fifteen major characters involved in or affected by
20864-433: The ranks of the Jedi Order, he was tasked with training the young Force-sensitive Ezra Bridger throughout his eventual service to the larger Rebellion. Ultimately, Jarrus died to save his friends, in particular Hera Syndulla , who would later give birth to her and Jarrus' son, Jacen Syndulla. In Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker , he appears as a disembodied voice alongside other past Jedi, empowering Rey to face
21027-461: The rest of his life in exile on Ahch-To , the original headquarters of the Jedi Order, blaming himself for Ben's turn and the destruction of his Order, until he was found by Rey, the Last Jedi and the secret granddaughter of Sidious, whom he reluctantly trained in the Jedi arts. Shortly after, he gave his life to distract Kylo Ren, now Supreme Leader of the First Order , on the planet Crait via
21190-480: The right hand, and the tritagonist (third most important character), the left. In Ancient Greece, the protagonist is distinguished from the term "hero", which was used to refer to a human who became a semi-divine being in the narrative. In literary terms, a hero (masculine) or heroine (feminine) protagonist is typically admired for their achievements and noble qualities. Heroes are lauded for their strength, courage, virtuousness, and honor, and are considered to be
21353-448: The second film in the sequel trilogy, was released in 2017; Lucas described the film as "beautifully made". Lucas has had cursory involvement with Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018), the Star Wars streaming series The Mandalorian , and the premiere of the eighth season of Game of Thrones . Lucas met with J. J. Abrams before the latter began writing the script to the sequel trilogy's final film, The Rise of Skywalker , which
21516-427: The series would be a tragic one, examining Anakin Skywalker's fall to the dark side. Lucas also began to change the status of the prequels relative to the originals; at first, they were supposed to be a "filling-in" of history tangential to the originals, but now he saw that they could form the beginning of one long story that started with Anakin's childhood and ended with his death. This was the final step towards turning
21679-582: The series. Lucas was in attendance for a ceremony honoring Williams as the 44th recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award , the first composer to receive the honor, and gave a speech in praise of their relationship and his work. In interviews, and most famously at the 40th Anniversary Star Wars Celebration convention, Lucas has repeatedly reaffirmed the importance of Williams to the Star Wars saga, affectionately referring to him as
21842-569: The sound and visual effects subdivisions of Lucasfilm, while Lucasfilm Games, later renamed LucasArts , produces products for the gaming industry. Having lost much of his fortune in a divorce settlement in 1987, Lucas was hesitant on making additional Star Wars features. However, the prequels , which were still only a series of ideas partially pulled from his original drafts of "The Star Wars", continued to tantalize him with technical possibilities that would make it worthwhile to revisit his older material. When Star Wars became popular once again, in
22005-483: The story of Star Wars character Darth Vader in some ways, but concluded he was glad to be able to make his films the way he wanted to. Lucas collaborated with Jeff Nathanson as a writer of the 2008 film Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull , directed by Steven Spielberg. Similar to the Star Wars prequels, the reception was mixed with fans and critics alike. From 2008 to 2014, Lucas also served as
22168-542: The theatrical run of Return of the Jedi . At this point, Lucas had no desire to return to Star Wars , and had unofficially canceled the sequel trilogy . Lucas, formerly a member of Writers Guild of America West , left and maintained financial core status in 1981. Also in 1983, Lucas and Tomlinson Holman founded the audio company THX . The company was formerly owned by Lucasfilm and contains equipment for stereo, digital, and theatrical sound for films, and music. Skywalker Sound and Industrial Light & Magic , are
22331-417: The time, including Jean-Luc Godard 's Breathless , François Truffaut 's Jules et Jim and Federico Fellini 's 8½ . "That's when George really started exploring," Plummer said. Through his interest in autocross racing, Lucas met renowned cinematographer Haskell Wexler , another race enthusiast. Wexler, later to work with Lucas on several occasions, was impressed by Lucas's talent. "George had
22494-497: The titular group of enhanced clones, who disobey Order 66 and instead choose to save a younger Kanan after his master is killed by the other clones. The canon video game Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order introduces Cal Kestis, a former Padawan hiding from the Empire who accidentally exposes his Force abilities to aid someone, putting him on the Inquisitors' radar. Kestis gets aid from Cere Junda, another Jedi Knight in hiding. In
22657-471: The tree, teaching him that failure is just as important as success, and those masters are defined by those who surpass them. Near the end of the film, Luke confronts Kylo on the planet Crait . It is subsequently revealed that Luke had been projecting himself from Ahch-To; he dies from the effort and becomes one with the Force. Rey is shown to have taken the sacred Jedi texts before she left Ahch-To, in order to continue her training. In The Rise of Skywalker ,
22820-470: The wake of Dark Horse 's comic book line and Timothy Zahn 's trilogy of spin-off novels , Lucas realized that there was still a large audience. His children were older, and with the explosion of CGI technology he began to consider directing once again. By 1993, it was announced, in Variety among other sources, that Lucas would be making the prequels. He began penning more to the story, indicating that
22983-551: The wisest and most powerful Jedi Master within the Star Wars universe. Mace Windu was a human Jedi Master of the Order and one of the last members of the Order's upper echelons before the fall of the Galactic Republic . Plo Koon was a Kel Dor Jedi Master who served as a General during the Clone Wars and a member of the Jedi Council . Koon led the 442nd Siege Battalion in the Battle of Cato Neimoidia, in which he
23146-459: The word may have been influenced by the term "bodhisattva," which refers to a Buddhist concept of an enlightened being who chooses to remain in the world to help others. Another potential influence on the word "jedi" is the Hebrew term "yedid," which means "beloved." In his book The Secret History of Star Wars , Michael Kaminski suggests that Lucas may have been influenced by this term when creating
23309-416: The youngling ultimately returned to Djarin as his Mandalorian foundling. Protagonist The protagonist is the character whose fate is most closely followed by the reader or audience, and who is opposed by the antagonist . The antagonist provides obstacles and complications and creates conflicts that test the protagonist, revealing the strengths and weaknesses of the protagonist's character, and having
23472-544: Was "very torn" about having sold the rights to the franchise, despite having hand-picked Abrams to direct, and that his father was "there to guide" but that "he wants to let it go and become its new generation." Among the materials turned over to the production team were story treatments Lucas developed when he considered creating Episodes VII – IX himself; in January 2015, Lucas stated that Disney had discarded his story ideas. The Force Awakens , directed by J. J. Abrams ,
23635-494: Was a critical success but a financial failure. His next work as a writer-director was American Graffiti (1973), inspired by his youth in early 1960s Modesto, California , and produced through the newly founded Lucasfilm. The film was critically and commercially successful and received five Academy Award nominations, including Best Director and Best Picture . Lucas's next film, the epic space opera Star Wars (1977), later retitled Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope , had
23798-545: Was betrayed by her clone troopers as part of Order 66, but she managed to escape alongside Clone Captain Rex (whose control chip she removed). Years later, Ahsoka served the nascent Rebel Alliance as the spymaster and head of its intelligence network, directing operations behind the codename Fulcrum. After the Galactic Civil War, she began searching for Ezra Bridger and Grand Admiral Thrawn , who had gone missing in
23961-607: Was composed by John Williams , on the recommendation of his friend and colleague Steven Spielberg. Whilst initially wanting to use tracks and film music in a similar manner to 2001: A Space Odyssey , which served as the inspiration for the film, Williams advised against this and instead proposed a system of recurring themes (or leitmotifs ) to enhance the story in the style of classical composers Gustav Holst , William Walton , and Igor Stravinsky ; works that Lucas had used as " temp tracks " for Williams to gain inspiration from. The film, and subsequent sequels and prequels, make use of
24124-897: Was considering establishing a museum, the Lucas Cultural Arts Museum, to be built on Crissy Field near the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, which would display his collection of illustrations and pop art, with an estimated value of more than $ 1 billion. Lucas offered to pay the estimated $ 300 million cost of constructing the museum, and would endow it with $ 400 million when it opened, eventually adding an additional $ 400 million to its endowment. After being unable to reach an agreement with The Presidio Trust , Lucas turned to Chicago. A potential lakefront site on Museum Campus in Chicago
24287-585: Was eventually seduced to the dark side by the Sith Lord, Darth Sidious, and became the Sith Lord Darth Vader , serving the Galactic Empire. While he was a member of the Jedi Council, he trained a Padawan of his own, Ahsoka Tano during the Clone Wars. Vader was eventually redeemed by his son in Return of the Jedi and gave his own life to save Luke, killing Sidious and fulfilling the prophecy of
24450-590: Was founded as a nonprofit operating foundation to celebrate and encourage innovation in schools. The foundation's content is available under the brand Edutopia , in an award-winning web site, social media and via documentary films. Lucas, through his foundation, was one of the leading proponents of the E-Rate program in the universal service fund , which was enacted as part of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 . On June 24, 2008, Lucas testified before
24613-612: Was founded in 1979 as the Graphics Group, one third of the Computer Division of Lucasfilm . Pixar's early computer graphics research resulted in a digital film The Adventures of André & Wally B. and groundbreaking effects in films such as Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Young Sherlock Holmes , and the group was purchased in 1986 by Steve Jobs shortly after he left Apple Computer . Jobs paid Lucas $ 5 million and put $ 5 million as capital into
24776-494: Was involved in the production of, and financially benefited from, almost every big-budget film released in the U.S. from the late 1980s until the 2012 Disney sale. In addition to his career as a filmmaker, Lucas has founded and supported multiple philanthropic organizations and campaigns dedicated to education and the arts, including the George Lucas Educational Foundation , which has been noted as
24939-473: Was known to be the leader of a small rebel cell called the Spectres, operating on the planet Lothal . As a survivor of Order 66, Jarrus was forced to break certain Jedi traditions to avoid being detected by Imperial forces that continued their mission to eliminate any Jedi on sight, such as eschewing traditional Jedi robes or occasionally using a blaster, a weapon typically shunned by Jedi. Although he lost his master Depa Billaba to Order 66 before he could ascend
25102-777: Was listed by the American Film Institute in 2005 as the greatest film score of all time . The professional relationship formed by Lucas and Williams extended through to Williams working on all of Lucas's blockbuster franchise movies: the remaining two films of the Star Wars original trilogy ; all three films of prequel trilogy developed over fifteen years later; and the five films of the Indiana Jones franchise, in which Williams reunited with his long-time collaborator Spielberg. In his collaborations with Lucas, Williams received six of his fifty-two Academy Award nominations ( Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of
25265-503: Was no longer operational, Lucas approached Douglas Trumbull , best known for the effects on 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) and Silent Running (1972). Trumbull declined as he was already committed to working on Steven Spielberg 's film Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), but suggested his assistant John Dykstra to Lucas. Dykstra brought together a small team of college students, artists, and engineers and set them up in
25428-418: Was only because Alan Ladd Jr. at 20th Century Fox liked American Graffiti that he forced through a production and distribution deal for the film, which ended up restoring Fox to financial stability after a number of flops. Star Wars was significantly influenced by samurai films of Akira Kurosawa , Spaghetti Westerns , as well as classic sword and sorcery fantasy stories. Star Wars quickly became
25591-577: Was proposed in May 2014. By June 2014, Chicago had been selected, pending approval of the Chicago Plan Commission , which was granted. The museum project was renamed the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art . On June 24, 2016, Lucas announced that he was abandoning his plans to locate the museum in Chicago, due to a lawsuit by a local preservation group, Friends of the Parks, and would instead build
25754-587: Was released in 2019. Lucas founded a film production company Lucasfilm in 1971, and incorporated as Lucasfilm Ltd. on September 12, 1977. In the mid-1970s, the company's offices were located on the Universal Studios Lot . Lucas founded the Star Wars Corporation, Inc. as a subsidiary to control various legal and financial aspects of Star Wars (1977), including copyright, and sequel and merchandising rights. It also produced
25917-399: Was released on December 18, 2015. Kathleen Kennedy produced the film and its sequels. The new sequel trilogy was jointly produced by Lucasfilm and The Walt Disney Company , which had acquired Lucasfilm in 2012. During an interview with talk show host and journalist Charlie Rose that aired on December 24, 2015, Lucas likened his decision to sell Lucasfilm to Disney to a divorce and outlined
26080-495: Was sent to rescue the ten-year old Princess, and, after retrieving Leia on the planet Daiyu, was forced to duel his former apprentice Darth Vader on the planet Mapuzo, before escaping. Leia Organa , who was imprisoned by the Third Sister on the planet Nur, is saved by Obi-Wan Kenobi a second time before the two escape to the planet Jabiim with aid from the Path. Vader and Kenobi duel once more following Obi-Wan's attempted escape from
26243-491: Was shot down by his own troops upon the occurrence of Order 66 . Kit Fisto was a Nautolan Jedi Master, who served as a member of the Jedi Order during the Clone Wars . During the attempted arrest of Chancellor Palpatine , Fisto was killed by the Sith Lord in a duel, leaving Mace Windu to face the Chancellor alone. Count Dooku was a human Jedi Master who was trained by Yoda and mentored Qui-Gon Jinn, who later fell to
26406-565: Was the Serbian montagist (and dean of the USC Film Department) Slavko Vorkapich , a film theoretician who made stunning montage sequences for Hollywood studio features at MGM , RKO , and Paramount . Vorkapich taught the autonomous nature of the cinematic art form, emphasizing the kinetic energy inherent in motion pictures. After graduating with a bachelor of fine arts in film in 1967, he tried joining
26569-519: Was ultimately never produced. Projects where Lucas was credited as executive producer and sometimes story writer in this period include Kurosawa's Kagemusha (1980), John Korty 's Twice Upon a Time (1983), Ewoks: Caravan of Courage (1984), Ewoks: Battle for Endor (1985), Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985), Jim Henson 's Labyrinth (1986), Ron Howard 's Willow (1988), Don Bluth 's The Land Before Time (1988), and
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