Some Star Wars movies divide the community, but probably every fan can agree that the Holiday Special is terrible, at least everyone who has seen it. There is no official way to do that, even though the special introduced one of the coolest characters in the franchise.
What happens in The Star Wars Holiday Special? At its core, it’s about Chewbacca’s family on Kashyyyk, who are preparing for a celebration that’s basically Christmas. Han Solo and Chewbacca fly there for that. While the family waits for them, there are many confusing scenes in which people dance or sing.
The film is a true fever dream and cannot be compared to anything else in the franchise. The film is so notorious for its poor quality that George Lucas allegedly wanted to destroy all copies. Fans are also not happy about the new Star Wars series: “Even Harry Potter is more Star Wars than this nonsense” – Disney’s latest Star Wars hits a negative record
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The most curious case of a Star Wars film
The show was released in 1978, just a year after the first film and before the second. The Holiday Special was produced specifically for television, so the budget wasn’t particularly high. Interestingly, you can’t officially watch the special, even though you have Star Wars Vintage on Disney Plus.
Under this banner you can watch the first Clone Wars miniseries or the two Ewok films, which were also produced for television. The Holiday Special is not included, however. You won’t find any DVDs or Blu-ray either. The only options are on YouTube.
The strange thing about the film is that there are so many actors that you know. Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher all appear in the Holiday Special. The myth surrounding the film is so great that George Lucas is said to have once said: If I had the time and a sledgehammer, I would find every copy of the show and destroy it. However, this quote is difficult to prove because there is no original source for it.
Despite its notorious quality, the film introduced Boba Fett, one of the most popular characters in the universe, two years before The Empire Strikes Back. In an animated sequence in the film (yes, there was one), Boba Fett helps our heroes before it is revealed that he is working for Darth Vader. The character’s design was first seen in a parade that same year (via dorksiteoftheforce.com).
Harrison Ford denies his participation. In 2005, Ford was asked about the Holiday Special by Conan O’Brien (via YouTube). Ford initially reacted with panic, until he replied to O’Brien that he couldn’t remember anything like that. Then he was shown a clip and Ford simply said: Thank you.
There is now also a documentary about the special called A Disturbance in the Force. Unfortunately, it has not yet been released in Germany. Have you seen the Holiday Special? Write us your opinion in the comments. If you have always wondered why Chewbacca tilts his head, you can find out here: This is why Chewbacca tilts his head to the side so often in the “Star Wars” films