← 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

Flying High The 2012 trailblazing drama, Red Tails, is the latest addition to the über-producer’s resume. The film tells the story of the Tuskegee Airmen, the first Black pilots to fight for the segregated U.S. Army during World War II. It took Lucas a staggering 23 years and $90 million of his own money to get the film made. While making the rounds to promote the project, Lucas revealed why studio heads were reluctant to green light his project. “It's an all-Black movie,” Lucas told Jon Stewart. “I showed it to all of them and they said, ‘No, we don't know how to market a movie like this.’” Some found Lucas’ candid publicity tour to be a divisive marketing ploy, while others used it as an opportunity to explore a supposed post racial Hollywood's reluctance to produce films that showcase Black people as heroes. Either way, his diatribe spawned an Occupy Red movement on Facebook and Twitter, and galvanized people to support the film. Red Tails debuted at No. 2 its opening weekend, bringing in more than $18 million.

Flying High

The 2012 trailblazing drama, Red Tails, is the latest addition to the über-producer’s resume.…

(Image: Getty)