{"id":3186,"date":"2026-09-18T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/?p=3186"},"modified":"2026-10-23T21:54:59","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T21:54:59","slug":"star-wars-returns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/2026\/09\/18\/star-wars-returns\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Star Wars\u2019 returns"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Jed Arico <\/a>\u00b7 Contributing Writer<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
“Star Wars” first premiered 50 years ago. (Disney)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The year is 1976.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A 31-year-old man is in the middle of the Tunisian desert, a place he\u2019s wanted to be for a long time. It\u2019s the first day of filming his new movie. This creation has been his dream for years, but obstacles have been everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before filming even started, props broke, actors quit and the weather didn\u2019t cooperate in the slightest. The most pressing challenge has been the extremely limited budget. Almost every studio in Hollywood rejected this director, with only 20th Century Fox hesitantly agreeing to finance it. And the funding is meager: an $11 million budget for one of the most ambitious movies of all time. It\u2019s not enough, but he knows it will have to do. Without another word, George Lucas pans the camera towards the scene and calls \u201cAction!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s been 50 years since that day in the desert. In that time, \u201cStar Wars\u201d has bloomed into one of the biggest franchises of all time. When it hit theaters in 1977, the first movie was a smash hit, with eager moviegoers lining up around the block to see this new creation. As viewers left the theater, few seemed sad. People were buzzing with excitement and optimism at what they\u2019d just seen, and there\u2019s a lot to love. The main character is remarkably relatable, the story is wonderfully charming and the film\u2019s universe draws the audience to full immersion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

History had been made, and yet the journey didn\u2019t stop there. Since 1977, \u201cStar Wars\u201d has released 11 more theatrical movies, over 20 television series and hundreds of books. As a result, the franchise has gained millions of lifelong fans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What truly puts \u201cStar Wars\u201d in its own class, however, is the incredible cultural relevance it has gained. Though most people haven\u2019t seen it (it\u2019s estimated that 1 billion people, or 15% of the world\u2019s population, have watched at least one Star Wars movie<\/a> the societal influence the franchise has had globally is like nothing else. Compared to other films, few wouldn\u2019t instantly recognize Yoda; it feels like almost everyone could likely place Darth Vader\u2019s iconic breathing. And who hasn\u2019t heard the phrase, \u201cMay the Force be with you<\/a> ?\u201d One thing is for sure: the impact \u201cStar Wars\u201d has made on the modern world is hard to overstate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fact remains, however, that swathes of people have never seen \u201cStar Wars.\u201d If you are one of those people, perhaps you enjoy missing out on one of the greatest cinematic creations humanity has ever achieved, remaining in your ignorance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But if you want to experience the magic that has captivated millions over the decades, then this is the perfect time. For its 50th anniversary, \u201cStar Wars: Episode IV \u2013 A New Hope\u201d is being re-released in theaters, so younger generations can get the same experience their parents had in the 1970s. Soon, a theater near you might be playing the most impactful movie of the century, and it is not something to pass up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

See it when you can! And of course, may the Force be with you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Jed Arico \u00b7 Contributing Writer The year is 1976. A 31-year-old man is in the middle of the Tunisian desert, a place he\u2019s wanted to be for a long time. It\u2019s the first day of filming his new movie. This creation has been his dream for years, but obstacles have been everywhere. Before filming […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":3187,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[220],"tags":[21,283,258,253],"class_list":["post-3186","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-movies-tv","tag-entertainment","tag-jed-arico","tag-movies-tv","tag-sept-18-2026-edition"],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/10\/image-3.webp",975,649,false],"thumbnail":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/10\/image-3-150x150.webp",150,150,true],"medium":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/10\/image-3-300x200.webp",300,200,true],"medium_large":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/10\/image-3-768x511.webp",768,511,true],"large":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/10\/image-3.webp",975,649,false],"1536x1536":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/10\/image-3.webp",975,649,false],"2048x2048":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/10\/image-3.webp",975,649,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"elvinrj23","author_link":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/author\/elvinrj23\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Jed Arico \u00b7 Contributing Writer The year is 1976. A 31-year-old man is in the middle of the Tunisian desert, a place he\u2019s wanted to be for a long time. It\u2019s the first day of filming his new movie. This creation has been his dream for years, but obstacles have been everywhere. Before filming…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3186","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3186"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3186\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3384,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3186\/revisions\/3384"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3187"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3186"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3186"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3186"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}