New ‘Empire Strikes Back’ Behind-the-Scenes Video Takes Us Back To A Time Far, Far Away

It’s still the best Star Wars film after 40 years.

We’re always hungry for rare glimpses into the making of a masterpiece. Now GMA has released rare and never-before-seen behind-the-scenes footage of The Empire Strikes Back. It’s been 40 years since Empire was released, a milestone for a movie that still ranks as one of the best Star Wars films, and a rollicking space adventure in its own right. 

“Three years later, everyone comes back to work and everybody’ more enthusiastic than they were the first time,” Lucas says in the video. “The first time everybody is sort of confused by the whole thing and didn’t know what they were up against. Now they had a better picture of what we were making.”

The six-minute footage takes us from the sets to location shoots in Norway, with voiceovers of Mark Hamill, Billy Dee Williams, George Lucas and screenwriter, Lawrence Kasdan. If you’re familiar with J.W. Rinzler’s fantastic book, The Making of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, then this rare footage augments that rich treasure trove of information on the entire production of Empire. In six-minutes, the footage focuses on the actors, but we do get some glimpses of the cutting-edge effects that revolutionized science fiction film-making in the ’80s, such as the stop-motion effects of the Imperial Walkers, and all the incredible bluescreen work that expanded the possibilities of the chroma key process in filmmaking.

Watching Mark Hamill practicing his light-saber skills in jeans is an instant iconic moment. “When I read the script, it was so unexpected,” says Hamill. “Usually, when you do a sequel, they want to just repeat the experience. And, you know, that would mean that the second film would end with exhilaration and triumph. It was so daring. I don’t think we were ever able to be that surprising again.”