← George Lucas Decoded: Four Decades of Hollywood Domination

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By Anslem Samuel | Published March 13, 2012 | Full size is 620 × 480 pixels

The Stakes is High Profit It’s no secret that Lucas’s much-adored sci-fi soap opera series, Star Wars, smashed records at the box office, catapulting his fortune and Hollywood star power to astronomical heights. Since its debut in 1977, the franchise has earned a total $4.4 billion worldwide. But it was the auteur’s ingenious decision to waive his director’s fee to the cult classic in exchange for 40% of the “stake profits,” and the licensing rights to the film’s merchandising that really paid off. According to the Biography Channel online, since 1977, the production studio thought the rights to be “worthless,” but have since been proven wrong as the Star Wars franchise acquired an approximate $20 million since the film’s initial release.

The Stakes is High Profit

It’s no secret that Lucas’s much-adored sci-fi soap opera series, Star…

(Image: Getty)