A New Documentary Titled 'A Disturbance In The Force' Will Document The Making Of The 'Star Wars Holiday Special' And It Debuts This Year
Image Source: YouTube
Many diehard fans have heard of The Star Wars Holiday Special that aired on CBS the week of Thanksgiving – November 17, 1978. Several of which may have even seen bootlegged copies of the two-hour television special. This would be because Lucasfilm never released to video or rebroadcast the program. Not only does George Lucas wish the special had never happened, but he has also stated on numerous occasions that it will never be officially released on any platform.
Fortunately, with the invention of the internet, a new generation of fans has been able to “enjoy“ the spectacle. As this piece is not readily available for viewer consumption the seemingly secret nature of it has created much mystery around the broadcast. Why was it made? How was it made? Why does George Lucas dislike it so much? These are questions that the creators of a documentary titled, A Disturbance in the Force intend to answer.
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Before discussing the documentary, what do we know about the special itself? IMDB gives the following synopsis of the television special – “Chewbacca and Han Solo try to get to the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk to celebrate Life Day, but are impeded by an Imperial blockade. Chewie's family passes the time with various forms of entertainment.” Timeline-wise, it occurs between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back, although The Empire Strikes Back was not yet released.
Image Source: IMDB
The special was directed by Steve Binder and David Acomba (Acomba was uncredited) and the beloved cast reprised their roles, including Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca), and James Earl Jones (voice of Vader) to name a few. This broadcast was viewed by 13 million people when it premiered, with one of the more memorable aspects being the introduction of the popular character, Bobo Fett. While neither fans nor critics embraced the special to the Star Wars world – many of the creative folks have since utilized various pieces, thereby allowing at least portions of it to become canon.
What do we know thus far about the documentary, A Disturbance in the Force? In short – it promises to answer the burning questions fans have about the holiday special. The official synopsis per Comicbook reads:
“In 1977, Star Wars became a cultural phenomenon that single-handedly revitalized a stagnant film industry, and forever changed how films were sold, made, and marketed. Movies would never be the same again. A year later, neither would television. In 1978, CBS aired the two-hour Star Wars Holiday Special during the week of Thanksgiving and was watched by 13 million people. It never re-aired. While some fans of the franchise are aware of this dark secret, this bizarre two hours of television still remains relatively unknown among the general public. Simply put, we will answer how and why did the Holiday Special get made."
Image Source: Star Wars Special Documentary
The documentary is directed by Jeremy Coon (Napoleon Dynamite, Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made) and Steve Kozak (Whose Line Is It Anyway?). This pair also serves as producers of the film along with Adam F. Goldberg (The Goldbergs) and Kyle Newman (Fanboys). Collider reports that the documentary will feature Seth Green, Weird Al Yankovic, Taran Killam, Gilbert Gottfried, Bonnie Burton, Paul Scheer, Bruce Vilanch, Lenny Ripps, Donny Osmond, and Miki Herman.
The official date of its debut has not been released just yet, but it will premiere at the 2023 SXSW Film Festival, which kicks off on March 10th.
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Sources: Twitter, Holiday Special Documentary, Collider, IMDB [1], [2], [3], [4], Comicbook, Wookieepedia
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