The Star Wars
by
George Lucas
Rough Draft [First of four major screenplay drafts]
Lucasfilm Ltd.
5/74
1. FADE IN:
SPACE
A sea of stars is broken by the vast blue surface of the planet, Utapau. Five
small moons slowly drift into view from the far side of the planet. The main
titles are followed by a roll-up:
Until the recent Great Rebellion, the Jedi Bendu were the most feared warriors
in the universe. For one hundred thousand years, generations of Jedi
perfected their art as the personal bodyguards of the emperor. They were the
chief architects of the invincible Imperial Space Force which expanded the
Empire across the galaxy, from the celestial equator to the farthest reaches
of the Great Rift.
Now these legendary warriors are all but extinct. One by one they have been
hunted down and destroyed as enemies of the New Empire by a ferocious and
sinister rival warrior sect, the Knights of Sith.
A small silver spacecraft emerges from behind one of the Utapau moons. The
deadly little fightercraft speeds past several of the moons, until it finally
goes into orbit around the fourth moon.
2. WASTELAND - FOURTH MOON - UTAPAU
A harsh gale blows across the bleak grey surface of the Fourth Moon. The
leaden sky presses down on a lone figure, Annikin Starkiller, a tall, heavy-
set boy of eighteen. He slowly makes his way across the canyon floor. The
heavy winds whip at him and make the going extremely difficult. His face is
covered by a breath mask and goggles. He stops for a second to adjust the
shoulder strap on his chrome multiplelaser rifle. Something in the sky
catches his eye, and he instinctively grabs a pair of electrobinoculars from
his belt. He stands transfixed for a few moments, studying the heavens, then
turns and rushes back in the direction from which he came.
3. SUPPLY HUT - FOURTH MOON - UTAPAU
A spacecraft, half buried in the dust, rests next to the remains of an
abandoned supply shack. Annikin makes his way across the colorless landscape
and rushes into the crumbling building. The interior of the hut is shabby,
but manages to abate the howling winds. Seated in front of a thermoheater are
Annikin's father, Kane, and his young brother, Deak. Kane is a large, burly
man, wearing the distinctive robes of a Jedi. Deak is ten years old, with
dusty blond hair and a large scratch on his cheek. Annikin slams the door and
removes his gear. His ruggedly handsome face is caked with many layers of
dust.
ANNIKIN
Dad! Dad!...They've found us!
Deak looks up from a small cube he has been studying. His father whacks him
across the shoulder with a braided wire connector.
KANE
Continue with the problem. Your concentration is worse than your brother's.
(to Annikin) How many?
ANNIKIN
Only one this time. A Banta Four.
KANE
Good. We may not have to repair this old bucket after all. Prepare yourself.
DEAK
Me too!
KANE
Do you have the answer?
DEAK
I think it's the Corbet dictum: "What is, is without."
Kane smiles. This is the correct answer. Annikin is strapping on a utility
belt with chrome laserpistols and lasersword. Kane rises and starts for his
equipment.
DEAK (Con't)
Ahhh, Pop...
KANE
Deak, do you feel you're ready?
DEAK
Yes, sir. I've outmarked Annikin in twelve disciplines. I'm as good...
KANE
All right, son, get your gear.
Deak jumps up with the enthusiasm available only to a ten-year-old and grabs
his gear. His father frowns and shakes his head.
4. WASTELAND BLUFF - FOURTH MOON - UTAPAU
Kane Starkiller and his two sons carefully make their way up a rock bluff
overlooking the parked silver Sith spacecraft. Kane inspects the craft with
his electrobinoculars.
KANE
No tracks. Bi-lock hasn't been opened....Interior systems are still on....
ANNIKIN
Are we going to wait for him to come out?
KANE
He's not in there....He's baiting us. I'm surprised they only sent one this
time. We must be wearing them down, or they must think this knight is
something special....Stay on guard, and keep hidden. I'm going to work my way
across the ridge and call his bluff. Better we meet in open combat than wait
for him to ambush us....Keep your guard!
Kane leaves his two sons and moves off along the obscured ridge. Annikin and
Deak watch him intently. Annikin throws down his multiplelaser rifle in
disgust.
ANNIKIN
He should have let me go with him....He's getting too old to make an open
challenge.
DEAK
He's not too old to realize you'd just get in the way.
Annikin ignores his little brother's remark and sneaks a look over the ridge
at the Sith spacecraft. Kane moves out of the rocks some distance away and
starts toward the starship. Deak moves to the ridge next to his brother, his
chrome laserrifle sparkling in the reflected light of Utapau.
DEAK
He's making his move....
ANNIKIN
Watch your guard...and cover that weapon. It shines like a beacon.
Deak reluctantly move away and watches the other direction. Kane has almost
reached the Sith spacecraft and still there is no sign of its occupant.
DEAK
What's happening?
ANNIKIN
Nothing. I don't like it.
Kane carefully moves to the main hatch of the starship. He kicks a valve and
the hatch drops open with a loud clank and rushing gas. Annikin becomes more
tense as his father carefully moves inside the spacecraft. Everything is
still. Even the continual winds seem to have died down. Moments pass with no
sign of activity inside the enemy starship. Annikin watches the craft with
his electrobinoculars. The waiting becomes unbearable.
ANNIKIN
Something's happened! He's been in there too long.
DEAK
Let me look! Stand my guard.
Deak takes the electrobinoculars from his brother and studies the silent
spacecraft. Annikin impatiently scans the opposite horizon.
DEAK
I think the power just went off. We'd better wait here until someone comes
out.
ANNIKIN
What if he needs help?
DEAK
The power went back on again....
With the aid of the electrobinoculars, Deak watches the running lights of the
starship flash on and off. Suddenly, something huge moves in front of his
field of view. Before either of the two young boys can react, a large,
sinister Sith warrior in black robes and a face mask looms over them. He
carries a long lasersword which cuts young Deak down before he or his brother
are able to raise their weapons. The startled Annikin backs away in horror,
then settles down and ignites his lasersword, which creates an eerie red glow.
He stumbles over rocks as he attempts to avoid the charging Sith knight. The
evil warrior swings his mighty lasersword, but Annikin manages to deflect the
intended deathblow.
Finally, Annikin is able to assume a defensive stance, and the two warriors
stand, sizing up each other. The black knight is at least seven feet tall,
and dwarfs the young Jedi. They stand for a few moments, almost frozen, then
in a flurry of blows, laserswords clash with the sound of electric snapping
and popping. Annikin is barely able to hold his own against the experienced
knight. Many blows are exchanged before the Sith warrior is able to back
Annikin up against a deep crevasse. Annikin stumbles and almost falls over
the cliff to his death.
The black knight suddenly senses something behind him and whirls around to
face Annikin's father, Kane Starkiller, a Jedi Bendu master. The Sith warrior
raises his lasersword, but is cut in two before he can bring it down again.
Kane moves to the fallen black knight, and studies him carefully. Annikin,
still a little wobbly from the whole experience, attempts to stand. Kane sees
his dead son Deak, and goes to him. He lifts him into his arms and begins to
weep. Annikin stands bewildered, watching his father cradle his dead brother.
5. INTERIOR SITH STARSHIP - WASTELAND CANYON - UTAPAU
Kane Starkiller slides into one of the four seats of the small Sith starship.
Through the front viewing canopy, he watches Annikin drag his younger
brother's body to a small crevasse. Annikin places a small locket around his
brother's neck, makes a complicated sign with his hand, and dumps the body
into the shallow depression. The giant engines of the spacecraft begin to
whine, kicking up large clouds of dust.
Annikin climbs into the seat beside his father and removes his breath mask and
goggles. There are tears in his eyes. Father and son look out across the
wasteland towards Deak's grave. The thunderous clap of an explosion is
followed by a small mushroom cloud rising out of the depression. Annikin
throws a container down in a fit of rage.
ANNIKIN
How many more of them are there? I want to finish it, once and for all! I'm
sick of running...when will it stop?
Annikin's father waits silently until his son's tirade is finished. Annikin
sits silently for a few moments.
ANNIKIN (con't)
I'm sorry.
KANE
Son, plot a course for Aquilae.
Annikin lights up like a Bantha at feeding time.
ANNIKIN
Aquilae!! You mean we're going home?
KANE
We both need a rest.
Kane pulls back on the throttle, and the powerful spaceship lifts off the
surface of the Fourth Moon of Utapau.
6. CLOUD SEA - ALDERAAN
A title card appears over a sea of billowing clouds on the gaseous planet of
Alderaan:
Alderaan: Capital of the New Galactic Empire.
The towering white oxide clouds pass, revealing the Imperial city of Alderaan.
The magnificent domed and gleaming city is perched, mushroom-like, on a tall
spire, which disappears deep into the misty surface of the planet. The
peacefulness of this nebulous idyll is broken by the increasing wail of ion
engines. Four sleek stardestroyers, from the Imperial Third Fleet, burst
from one of the huge cumulus range. The craft are flying in a tight formation
as they bank steeply, and head toward the Imperial capital of the galaxy.
7. INTERIOR OF STARDESTROYER - ALDERAAN
Stardestroyers are two-man spacecraft crammed with sophisticated electronic
weaponry. The pilot and gunnery officers sit side-by-side, surrounded by
lighted readouts and switches. They wear the gleaming black uniforms of the
Empire.
PILOT
Tok-One to chicks: Shape it up. Let's make it good.
CHICK-ONE
Does that glare bother you?
PILOT
Use your face shield, Chick-One.
The pilot is cold and professional as he maneuvers his craft closer to the
others. The positions of the ships are displayed on a readout, along with a
graphic representation of the city. The pilot gives the gunner a quick look
before he flips his sunshield over his eyes.
PILOT
Here we go. Count: three, two, one, now!
8. REVIEW STAND - PLAZA OF THE DADERS - ALDERAAN
On a huge, austere platform stands the dark Cos Dashit, Lord of Alderaan,
Consul to the Supreme Tribunal, and ruler of the Galactic Empire. He is a
thin, grey-looking man, with an evil mustache which hangs limply over his
insipid lip. Standing at rigid attention on his right are several generals,
dressed in the black and grey uniform of the realm. Five members of the
Supreme Tribunal sit off to the side. On the emperor's left stands Crispin
Hoedaack, newly appointed Governor of the Aquilaean Systems, a young,
treacherous man with stone-cut, angular features and piercing grey eyes.
They all gaze skyward, as the four gleaming stardestroyers scream low overhead
in an impressive barrel-roll formation. As the sound of the spacecraft
resonates throughout the glass canyon of the Plaza, the group of dignitaries
return their attention to the parade of Imperial shock troops, and giant air
tanks (which ride magically two to three feet above the ground).
The Plaza of the Daders is filled with a hundred rows of troops as the last
brigade marches into position. The sound of a thousand men snapping to
attention is followed by a strange silence. A light wind blows the great red
banner of the Empire, creating a subtle flapping sound. The emperor's
amplified voice startles many of the troops as it cuts through the quiet.
EMPEROR
Upon this battle depends the survival of the Galactic Empire. Upon this
battle depends the life and long continuity of our civilization. Not since
the great Jedi Rebellion has our destiny been placed in such a balance. This
is to be the most magnificent campaign of all! You have never been called
without doing something to be remembered, something notable and striking. The
conquering of the Aquilaean System, the last of the independent Systems, and
the last refuge of the outlawed, vile sect of the Jedi, will have such
important and lasting consequences, that I can't but consider it as an epoch
in history.
To the rear of the Plaza, watching the spectacle over the shoulder of a
curious bureaucrat, stands Clieg Whitsun, a tall, blond young man about twenty
years old. He seems interested in what the emperor has to say, but keeps
looking around nervously as if someone were after him. His arm rests across
his head, as he carefully but coolly adjusts a glowing blue ring on his index
finger. The emperor nears the end of his speech.
Crispin Hoedaack has moved up to stand next to the sinister monarch.
The troops shout an Imperial salute in response to a particularly partisan
statement.
EMPEROR (con't)
...I have personally asked the Aquilaeans to accept this Treaty of Alliance.
During the long period of negotiation, they have only decided to be undecided.
We will barter no longer. Governor Hoedaack has been appointed the First Lord
of the Aquilaean System and Surrounding Territories. This is the last
frontier and the final stone in the great wall of the Galactic Empire.
The troops cheer, ad the emperor escorts Hoedaack inside. Whitsun moves
quickly away from the Plaza, passing through several check stations, where he
is forced to show his identification.
9. NIGHT CLUB - ALDERAAN
Whitsun walks into the glass and chrome splendor of one of the famous
nightclubs of Alderaan. He moves to the long mirrored bar, and sits next to a
rough-looking man, Bail Antilles, dressed in the distinctive gold and furs of
the Galactic traders.
WHITSUN
Your glass is empty.
Whitsun speaks into a small intercom on the bar front.
WHITSUN (con't)
A dantic and...
He looks in Antilles' glass.
ANTILLES
No thanks, Whitsun. I've had enough.
WHITSUN
Just a dantic then. Bail, it's not like you to refuse a drink. You're going
to give Galactic traders a bad name.
A drink appears magically from a small elevator in the bar. Whitsun takes it,
and then places a pen-like transmitter he has taken from his pocket next to
the intercom. It creates a low electronic buzz.
10. BAR OBSERVATION CENTER - ALDERAAN
A controller sitting in front of a row of monitors taps his headphones, then
flips a switch back and forth a couple of times. He is obviously annoyed.
CONTROLLER
Number eighteen is out again. Give me a maintenance check.
The controller yawns and puts his feet up on the control panel.
11. NIGHTCLUB - ALDERAAN
Whitsun leans in close to Antilles. He is suddenly very serious.
ANTILLES
Whitsun, we've got problems. They've just grounded all spacecraft, including
trade frigates. Even the ships under Imperial registry can't move. Something
big is up.
WHITSUN
I'm afraid they're not waiting for the Alliance Treaty. They're already
moving against the System. I've got to get word back.
ANTILLES
The chrome companies are protesting the embargo, but it's going to take some
time.
WHITSUN
Isn't anything moving?
ANTILLES
Military ships, but...
They are interrupted by an Imperial officer, and several stormtroopers. The
officer shouts over the P.A. system, as the troops rush to block the exits.
Whitsun and the Galactic trader are tense, but remain cool.
OFFICER
Attention: all Captains and First Officers of Guild Trade frigates will
accompany me to the Ministry of Transport immediately.
Antilles gives Whitsun a hopeless look as the troops check their papers, and
then take Antilles away. A small fight breaks out in the back of the
nightclub as one of the trader captains expresses his dislike of the Empire.
Whitsun slams his glass to the bar in a gesture of hate and frustration.
12. GOVERNOR HOEDAACK'S QUARTERS - ALDERAAN
The large, white-on-white executive quarters resound with the high-pitched
laugh of the evil Governor Hoedaack. He slaps Darth Vader, a tall, grim-
looking general, on the back, and the general's mouth makes the slightest
gesture at a smile.
HOEDAACK
Success, I told you. We are no longer under the control of the Great
Families....We've gained a true advantage.
Vantos Coll, a member of the Supreme Tribunal, and a man of the grossest
dimensions, appears to be a little worried.
COLL
A rather dangerous advantage. You still have a System to conquer.
HOEDAACK
But this System will bring us more scientific wealth than that of any other
House in the Tribunal. We will easily gain control of the directorship.
COLL
Don't underestimate the armies of Aquilae. They're lead by a Jedi.
HOEDAACK
I've told you about Commissioner Lars, General. He worries a lot.
VADER
It's a myth that any Jedi still exist.
COLL
General Skywalker is no myth. When I first arrived at court, he was the First
Bodyguard to the emperor...He lead the Jedi Rebellion.
VADER
Seig Darklighter lead the Rebellion.
COLL
So the emperor would have you think, but I was there.
VADER
Then why wasn't he hunted down like the others?
COLL
Because he is too dangerous, too clever. Besides, his presence on Aquilae is
still only a rumor.
HOEDAACK
Then why do you believe it?
COLL
Because I knew him. He's there, alright. I can sense it. Mark my words:
Aquilae will not be easily conquered.
13. COURTYARD - PALACE OF LITE - AQUILAE
A low, sleek "landspeeder," (an auto-like transport which travels a few feet
above the ground on a magnetic field), glides into the courtyard of the palace
of Aquilae. The planet is desert wilderness, but the palace is a sparkling
oasis, with low concrete walls and great turrets spilling over with foliage
from rooftop gardens. The speeder stops before an enormous shaded corridor.
Fountains line the beautiful and highly polished, tiled walkway. Two young
boys, Biggs (7) and Windom (5) are helped out of the speeder by Amber, a one-
armed bodyguard dressed in the flowing white robes of the Aquilaean military.
The two boys run through the long corridors, yelling and screaming, their
little footsteps echoing throughout the palace.
14. The palace library is a dim, cool room projecting an aura of time-worn
comfort and security. In the distance, the children can be heard screaming
through the corridors. King Kayos, silver-haired but amazingly youthful under
a tanned and leathery face, motions for one of his aides to shut the partially
closed door. He is in the middle of an emergency meeting of the Aquilaean
High Senate. The twelve men sit in overstuffed chairs, placed in a large
circle. A large, sallow-eyed Galactic trader named Aay Zavos fiddles
nervously with a small scrap of leather as he speaks.
ZAVOS
My Lord, the chrome companies are with you in spirit, but you must understand,
they can't openly support you. Imperial trade restrictions are very
unfavorable, and we, of course, favor your independence.
KAYOS
If there were to be war, would your frigates still supply us?
ZAVOS
Your bluntness is to be commended. It could be arranged.
Count Sandage, a corrupt noble of the Senate, jumps to his feet in a rage.
SANDAGE
This is nonsense! We have no choice but to approve the Treaty. If there is
war, the Empire will destroy our entire System with a snap of the finger.
General Skywalker is a dreamer if he thinks he can mount any meaningful
resistance....And you're dreamers if you believe him. So much trust in one
aged man. You must see...
At that moment, all heads t