Fans may not have fully recognized it before, but Marcia Lucas, in many ways, saved A New Hope and the original trilogy. Her editorial decisions and suggestions to George Lucas are responsible for some of the top moments in the first movie and steering the other two in the right direction.
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Marcia Lucas Saved A New Hope
Marcia Lucas played a major role in shaping A New Hope and the original trilogy. As an acclaimed editor and producer whose work includes American Graffiti and Taxi Driver, we may expect as much. Yet, her contributions were so important that they saved the first three movies.
This article conveys how she was responsible for “some of the franchise’s most iconic and tender moments,” such as Leia kissing Luke and saying “good luck” before they swung to safety in the first film. George Lucas wanted to cut this scene, along with the one with Chewie roaring at the mouse droid.
By retaining these scenes and others, Marcia won an Academy Award for her editing work in A New Hope. As a fan posted on this Quora forum, Marcia Lucas “helped mold the story into what we all remember and love about it.” Another post specifies how “the first cut” of the first movie was “absolutely horrible”, and it was up to Marcia to especially fix “the final scenes where the Rebels destroy the Death Star.”
Another article echoes these sentiments, indicating how Marcia helped save the first movie “by cutting down on unnecessary footage and streamlining the story.” She had a knack for keeping what was needed and moving, but dropping the scenes that weighed the narrative down. And, the final battle scene became “seamless and exciting” because of her efforts.
She may be best known for coming up with the idea to kill Obi-Wan. Many sources, including this video, recount how Lucas originally wanted Obi-Wan to survive his duel with Vader. Marcia thought the movie would be more powerful with Obi-Wan’s death and then serving as “a spiritual guide” to Luke.
Marcia also “insisted” that George Lucas kill off Kenobi because Obi-Wan didn’t “contribute much to the proceedings after that.” With her input, we are instead left with “one of sci-fi cinema’s most iconic moments.” She likewise “focused on editing the final ‘trench run’ on the Death Star,” instilling the ending with “urgency.”
Many of the emotional effects and climactic conclusion of the first movie can be credited to Marcia’s efforts.
Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, and the Franchise
As an editor on all three films, Marcia Lucas was also critical to the success of the other two original movies. Technically, Marcia’s work on Empire Strikes Back is uncredited, but unofficially, she has been recognized for her editorial work.
Empire, of course, was directed by Irvin Kershner and co-written by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan. Lucas was involved with production and consulted with Marcia to finalize the film. This volume delves into the creative process and behind-the-scenes wrangling, with Marcia helping bring continuity across the two films.
As the official co-editor of Return, Marcia had her hands full with the third film. As reviewed here, she commented on how Episode VI was “the most problematic editorially.” One of the key areas she aided was the Battle over the Sarlacc Pit, where Marcia spent “two months cutting that into something intelligible.”
Marcia Lucas has also been given credit for editing the deaths of Yoda and Vader. These iconic scenes would not have been as complete or moving without her influence. We needed that emotional weight especially with Vader’s unmasking before he died.
This recent documentary focuses on George and Marcia Lucas, Star Wars, and their personal lives. Marcia talks about her decision to cut out the Jabba and Han scene in A New Hope (almost 15 minutes) and how Lucas added it back in with CGI in the expanded edition. Likewise, George had Greedo shooting first at Han, which she didn’t agree with, and many fans didn’t either.
These changes reflect some of the shift in filmmaking without Marcia there to edit and advise. We may agree with her that this shift may not have been for the better in the prequels.
Marcia Lucas and the Original Trilogy
We can credit Marcia Lucas for some brilliant editorial work and decisions in A New Hope. The same goes for the next two original films. She also seems to have raised some concerns about the prequels and sequels that many fans have echoed.