The Empire Strikes Back - Wikipedia The Empire Strikes Back For other uses, see The Empire Strikes Back ( disambiguation ). The Empire Strikes Back Theatrical release poster by Roger Kastel Directed by Irvin Kershner Produced by Gary Kurtz Screenplay by Leigh Brackett Lawrence Kasdan Story by George Lucas Starring Mark Hamill Harrison Ford Carrie Fisher Billy Dee Williams Anthony Daniels David Prowse Kenny Baker Peter Mayhew Frank Oz Music by John Williams Cinematography Peter Suschitzky Edited by Paul Hirsch Production company Lucasfilm Ltd. Distributed by 20th Century Fox Release date May 17, 1980 ( 1980 - 05 - 17 ) ( Washington, D.C. ) May 21, 1980 ( 1980 - 05 - 21 ) ( United States ) Running time 124 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $18 -- 33 million Box office $534.1 -- 538.4 million The Empire Strikes Back ( also known as Star Wars : Episode V -- The Empire Strikes Back ) is a 1980 American epic space opera film directed by Irvin Kershner. Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan wrote the screenplay, with George Lucas writing the film 's story and serving as executive producer. The second installment in the original Star Wars trilogy, it was produced by Gary Kurtz for Lucasfilm and stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, and Frank Oz. The film is set three years after Star Wars. The Galactic Empire, under the leadership of the villainous Darth Vader and the Emperor, is in pursuit of Luke Skywalker and the rest of the Rebel Alliance. While Vader relentlessly pursues the small band of Luke 's friends -- Han Solo, Princess Leia Organa, and others -- across the galaxy, Luke studies the Force under Jedi Master Yoda. When Vader captures Luke 's friends, Luke must decide whether to complete his training and become a full Jedi Knight or to confront Vader and save them. Following a difficult production, The Empire Strikes Back was released on May 21, 1980. It received mixed reviews from critics initially but has since grown in esteem, becoming the most critically acclaimed chapter in the Star Wars saga ; it is now widely regarded as one of the greatest films of all time. The film ranks # 3 on Empire 's 2008 list of the 500 greatest movies of all time. It became the highest - grossing film of 1980 and, to date, has earned more than $538 million worldwide from its original run and several re-releases. When adjusted for inflation, it is the second - highest - grossing sequel of all time and the 13th - highest - grossing film in North America. The film was followed by Return of the Jedi, which was released in 1983. In 2010, the film was selected for preservation in the United States ' National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being `` culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant. '' Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Production 3.1 Development 3.2 Writing 3.3 Effects 3.4 Filming 4 Themes 5 Releases 5.1 Special Edition 5.2 Home media 6 Reception 6.1 Box office 6.2 Critical response 6.3 Accolades 6.3. 1 Legacy 7 Soundtrack 8 Other media 8.1 Novelization 8.2 Comic book adaptation 8.3 Book - and - record set 8.4 Video games 8.5 Radio adaptation 9 See also 10 References 10.1 Footnotes 10.2 Citations 10.3 Works cited 10.4 Bibliography 11 External links Plot Three years after the destruction of the Death Star, the Rebel Alliance has been driven from their former base on Yavin IV by the Galactic Empire. The Rebels, led by Princess Leia, have set up a new base on the ice planet Hoth. The Imperial fleet, led by Darth Vader, continues to hunt for the Rebels ' new base by dispatching probe droids across the galaxy. While investigating a potential meteor strike, Luke Skywalker is captured by a wampa, a yeti - like creature. He manages to escape from its cave with his lightsaber, but soon succumbs to the freezing temperatures and collapses. The force ghost of his late mentor, Obi - Wan Kenobi, instructs him to go to the Dagobah system to train under Jedi Master Yoda. Luke is found by Han Solo, whose tauntaun collapses and dies. Han uses its warmth to keep Luke warm while he sets up a shelter. The duo make it through the night and are rescued by a search party. On patrol, Han and Chewbacca discover the meteor Luke had planned to investigate is actually a probe droid, which alerts the Empire to the Rebels ' location. The Empire launches a large - scale attack, using AT - AT Walkers to capture the base. Despite great resistance, the Walkers destroy the base 's shield generator and force the Rebels to retreat. Han and Leia escape on the Millennium Falcon with C - 3PO and Chewbacca, but the hyperdrive malfunctions. They hide in an asteroid field, where Han and Leia grow closer and eventually kiss. Vader summons bounty hunters, including the notorious Boba Fett, to assist in finding the Falcon. Luke, meanwhile, escapes with R2 - D2 in his X-wing fighter and crash - lands on the swamp planet Dagobah. He meets a diminutive creature who reveals himself to be Yoda ; after conferring with Obi - Wan 's spirit, Yoda reluctantly accepts Luke as his student. Yoda trains Luke as a Jedi, and raises his sunken ship from the swamp with the power of the Force, after Luke claims it to be impossible. After evading the Empire, Han travels to the planet of Bespin, which is home to a floating colony in the skies known as Cloud City. Cloud City is run by Han 's old friend, Lando Calrissian. Unknowingly, the Millennium Falcon has been tracked for the Empire by Boba Fett ; shortly after they arrive, Lando leads the group into a trap and they are handed over to Darth Vader and Boba Fett. Vader plans to use the group as bait to lure out Luke, intending to capture him alive and take him to the Emperor. During his training on Dagobah, Luke sees a premonition of Han and Leia in pain in a city in the clouds and, against the wishes of Yoda and Obi - Wan, leaves to save them. Vader goes back on his agreement with Lando to let Leia and Chewbacca stay in Cloud City and takes them into custody instead. He intends to hold Luke in suspended animation in a block of carbonite for delivery to the Emperor. To test this process, he selects Han to be frozen against the protests of Fett, who fears he will lose his bounty. Han survives the freezing process. Vader then hands the frozen Han over to Fett, who intends to leave for Tatooine to deliver Han to Jabba the Hutt and claim the bounty on Han. Lando, who was forced into cooperating with the Empire, initiates an escape and frees Leia and the others. They then try to save Han but are too late and unable to stop Fett as he departs on his ship. They fight their way back to the Falcon and flee Cloud City. After arriving at Cloud City, and engaging in a brief confrontation with Boba Fett, Luke encounters Vader, and the two engage in a lightsaber duel that leads them over the city 's central air shaft. As his mentors warned, Luke proves to be no match for Vader, who severs Luke 's right hand, causing him to lose his weapon. After Luke refuses to join Vader against the Emperor, Vader reveals to Luke that he is his father. Humiliated, and horrified by the truth, Luke intentionally falls off the bridge and is pulled into an air shaft. He is ejected beneath the floating city, but is able to grab onto an antenna. He makes a desperate telepathic plea to Leia, who senses it and persuades Lando to return for him in the Falcon. After Luke is brought on board, they are chased by TIE fighters but R2 - D2 reactivates the Falcon 's hyperdrive, allowing them to escape. Later, aboard a medical frigate in the Rebel fleet, Luke 's severed hand is replaced with a robotic prosthetic. Lando and Chewbacca set off for Tatooine in the Falcon in order to find Jabba the Hutt and Boba Fett to save Han. As the Falcon departs, Luke, Leia, R2 - D2, and C - 3PO gaze out on the galaxy and await word from Lando. Cast Main articles : List of Star Wars characters and List of Star Wars cast members Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker : A Jedi in training, who is powerfully connected with the Force. Harrison Ford as Han Solo : A smuggler and Captain of the Millennium Falcon. Carrie Fisher as Leia Organa : A leader of the Rebel Alliance, the former Princess of the destroyed planet Alderaan. Billy Dee Williams as Lando Calrissian : Administrator of Cloud City and an old friend to Han Solo. Anthony Daniels as C - 3PO : A humanoid protocol droid in the Rebel Alliance. David Prowse as Darth Vader : A warrior of the dark side of the Force and the Emperor 's second - in command. The character 's voice is provided by James Earl Jones. Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca : A Wookiee and loyal friend to Han Solo. Kenny Baker as R2 - D2 : An astromech droid in the Rebel Alliance and long - time friend to C - 3PO. He also portrays a GONK power droid in the background. Frank Oz as Yoda : The wise, centuries - old Grand Master of the Jedi, who is Luke 's self - exiled Jedi Master living on Dagobah. Oz was assisted by several other performers, including Kathryn Mullen, David Barclay, Wendy Froud, Wendy Midener, and Deep Roy. Jeremy Bulloch as Boba Fett : A bounty hunter, hired by the Galactic Empire. Jason Wingreen provided Fett 's voice in the film 's original theatrical cut and the 1997 Special Edition. In the 2004 and 2011 special editions, Temuera Morrison, who played Jango Fett in Attack of the Clones and all his clones including Commander Cody in Revenge of the Sith, replaced Wingreen as Fett 's voice. Bulloch also makes a cameo appearance as the Imperial officer who grabs Leia when she tells Luke to avoid Vader 's trap with John Morton doubling as Fett in this scene. Several different actors portray the Emperor : The evil ruler of the Galactic Empire and Darth Vader 's powerful Sith Master, who appears via hologram. Clive Revill originally provided the voice of the Emperor, while Marjorie Eaton portrayed the Emperor 's physical form, filmed under heavy makeup with superimposed chimpanzee eyes. Ultimately they were replaced by Ian McDiarmid, who portrayed the character in later films, for the 2004 Special Edition and subsequent releases. Alec Guinness appears briefly as Obi - Wan Kenobi 's Force - ghost : Luke 's deceased mentor, who guides him to Yoda. Denis Lawson reprises his role as Wedge Antilles from the first film. John Hollis plays ' Lobot ', Lando 's personal aide. Julian Glover appears as General Veers, a general who leads the Empire in the battle of Hoth ; Kenneth Colley portrays Admiral Piett, the Empire 's top admiral ; Michael Sheard as Admiral Ozzel, Vader 's previous admiral ; Michael Culver appears as Captain Needa, one of the Empire 's captains who failed to catch the Millennium Falcon ; John Ratzenberger portrays Major Derlin, one of the officers who led the rebels in the battle of Hoth ; Bruce Boa appears as General Rieekan, Princess Leia 's military advisor on Hoth ; Christopher Malcolm plays Rebel snowspeeder pilot Zev Senesca, who finds Skywalker and Solo on the surface of Hoth ; and John Morton portrays Dak, Luke 's gunner in the battle of Hoth who was killed by an AT - AT. Morris Bush portrays the bounty hunter Dengar, Alan Harris portrays the bounty hunter Bossk and Chris Parsons portrays the robotic bounty hunter 4 - LOM. Production Development George Lucas, writer / director of the first film, decided to only executive produce and co-write this film George Lucas ' 1977 film Star Wars exceeded all expectations in terms of profit, had a revolutionary effect on the film industry, and had an unexpected resonance as a cultural phenomenon. Lucas hoped to become independent from the Hollywood film industry by financing The Empire Strikes Back himself with $33 million from loans and the previous film 's earnings, going against the principles of many Hollywood producers never to invest one 's own money. Now fully in command of his Star Wars enterprise, Lucas chose not to direct The Empire Strikes Back because of his other production roles, including overseeing his special effects company Industrial Light & Magic ( ILM ) and handling of the financing. Lucas offered the role of director to Irvin Kershner, one of his former professors at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. Lucas hired veteran independent film maker and his former professor Irvin Kershner to direct the movie Kershner was known for smaller - scale, character - driven films, but had more recently directed the true - life drama Raid on Entebbe ( 1977 ) and the thriller Eyes of Laura Mars ( 1978 ). Kershner initially turned Lucas down, citing his belief that a sequel would never meet the quality or originality of Star Wars. He called his agent, who immediately demanded that he take the job. Writing Lucas hired science fiction author Leigh Brackett to write Star Wars II with him. They held story conferences and, by late November 1977, Lucas had produced a handwritten treatment called The Empire Strikes Back. The treatment is similar to the final film, except that Darth Vader does not reveal he is Luke 's father. In the first draft that Brackett would write from this, Luke 's father appears as a ghost to instruct Luke. Brackett finished her first draft in early 1978 ; Lucas has said he was disappointed with it, but before he could discuss it with her, she died of cancer. With no writer available, Lucas had to write his next draft himself. It was this draft in which Lucas first made use of the `` Episode '' numbering for the films ; Empire Strikes Back was listed as Episode II. As Michael Kaminski argues in The Secret History of Star Wars, the disappointment with the first draft probably made Lucas consider different directions in which to take the story. He made use of a new plot twist : Darth Vader claims to be Luke 's father. According to Lucas, he found this draft enjoyable to write, as opposed to the yearlong struggles writing the first film, and quickly wrote two more drafts, both in April 1978. He also took the script to a darker extreme by having Han Solo imprisoned in carbonite and left in limbo. This new story point of Darth Vader being Luke 's father had drastic effects on the series. Michael Kaminski argues in his book that it is unlikely that the plot point had ever seriously been considered or even conceived of before 1978, and that the first film was clearly operating under an alternate storyline where Vader was separate from Luke 's father ; there is not a single reference to this plot point before 1978. After writing the second and third drafts of Empire Strikes Back in which the point was introduced, Lucas reviewed the new backstory he had created : Anakin Skywalker was Ben Kenobi 's brilliant student and had a child named Luke, but was swayed to the dark side by The Emperor ( who was really a Sith Lord and not simply just a politician ). Anakin battled Ben Kenobi on the site of a volcano and was wounded, but then resurrected as Darth Vader. Meanwhile, Kenobi hid Luke on Tatooine while the Republic became the Empire and Vader systematically hunted down the Jedi. With this new backstory in place, Lucas decided that the series would be a trilogy, changing Empire Strikes Back from Episode II to Episode V in the next draft. Lawrence Kasdan had just completed writing Raiders of the Lost Ark, and the screenplay impressed Lucas, who hired him to write the next drafts with additional input from director Irvin Kershner. Kasdan, Kershner, and producer Gary Kurtz saw the film as a more serious and adult film, which was helped by the new, darker storyline, and developed the series from the light adventure roots of the first film. Effects Play media The Imperial AT - AT walkers at the Battle of Hoth were created using models and a new stop motion animation technique developed by Phil Tippett for The Empire Strikes Back. When making Dragonslayer ( 1981 ) Tippett called it `` go motion ''. Landscape paintings ( by Mike Pangrazio ) were used as backgrounds to enhance the scenery. After the release of Star Wars, ILM grew from being a struggling company and moved to Marin County, California. The Empire Strikes Back provided the company with new challenges. Whereas Star Wars mostly featured space sequences, The Empire Strikes Back featured not only space dogfights but also an ice planet battle opening sequence and elements of cities that floated among the clouds. For the battle scenes on the ice planet Hoth, the initial intent was to use bluescreen to composite the Imperial walkers into still - shots from the original set. Instead, an artist ( Michael Pangrazio ) was hired to paint landscapes, resulting in the Imperial walkers being shot using stop motion animation in front of the landscape paintings. The original designs for the AT - ATs were, according to Phil Tippett, `` big armored vehicles with wheels ''. Many believe the finished design was inspired by the Port of Oakland container cranes, but Lucas denied this. In designing the Jedi Master Yoda, Stuart Freeborn used his own face as a model and added the wrinkles of Albert Einstein for the appearance of exceptional intelligence. Sets for Dagobah were built five feet above the stage floor, allowing puppeteers to crawl underneath and hold up the Yoda puppet. The setup presented communication problems for Frank Oz, who portrayed Yoda, as he was underneath the stage and unable to hear the crew and Mark Hamill above. Hamill later expressed his dismay at being the only human character on set for months ; he felt like a trivial element on a set of animals, machines, and moving props. Kershner commended Hamill for his performance with the puppet. Filming Filming began in Norway, at the Hardangerjøkulen glacier near the town of Finse, on March 5, 1979. Like the filming of Star Wars, where the production in Tunisia coincided with the area 's first major rainstorm in fifty years, the weather was against the film crew. While filming in Norway, they encountered the worst winter storm in fifty years. Temperatures dropped to − 20 ° F ( − 29 ° C ), and 18 feet ( 5.5 m ) of snow fell. On one occasion, the crew were unable to exit their hotel. They achieved a shot involving Luke 's exit of the Wampa cave by opening the hotel 's doors and filming Mark Hamill running out into the snow while the crew remained warm inside. Mark Hamill 's face was scarred in a motor accident that occurred between filming of Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back. Despite reports to the contrary, the scene in which Luke gets knocked out by the Wampa was not added specifically to explain this change to Hamill 's face. Lucas admitted that the scene `` helped '' the situation, though he felt that Luke 's time fighting in the rebellion was sufficient explanation. The production then moved to Elstree Studios in London on March 13, where over 60 sets were built, more than double the number used in the previous film. A fire in January on Stage 3 ( during filming of Stanley Kubrick 's The Shining ) forced the budget to be increased from $18.5 million to $22 million, and by July the budget increased $3 million more. Filming finished by mid-September. One memorable exchange of dialogue was partially ad - libbed. Originally a scene in which Princess Leia professed her love to Han Solo, with Han replying `` I love you too. '' Harrison Ford felt the characterization was not being used effectively, and Kershner agreed. After several takes, the director told the actor to improvise on the spot, and Ford changed Solo 's line to `` I know. '' During production, great secrecy surrounded the fact that Darth Vader was Luke 's father. The film includes a brief image of Vader with his mask off, facing away from the camera. For the original viewers of the film, this scene made it clear that Vader is not a droid. Like the rest of the crew, Prowse -- who spoke all of Vader 's lines during filming -- was given a false page that contained dialogue with the revelatory line being `` Obi - Wan killed your father. '' Hamill was informed just moments before cameras rolled on his close - up, and did not tell anyone, including his wife ; Ford did not learn the truth until he watched the film. To preserve the dramatic opening sequences of his films, Lucas wanted the screen credits to come at the end of the films. While this practice has become more common over the years, this was a highly unusual choice at the time. The Writers and Directors Guilds of America had no problem allowing it on Star Wars, back in 1977, because the writer - director credit ( George Lucas ) matched the company name, but when Lucas did the same thing for the sequel it became an issue because Lucas had his last name on the start of the film ( Lucasfilm ), while the director and the writers had theirs on the end. They fined him over $250,000 and attempted to pull Empire out of theaters. The DGA also attacked Kershner ; to protect his director, Lucas paid all the fines to the guilds. Due to the controversy, he left the Directors and Writers Guilds, and the Motion Picture Association. The initial production budget of $18 million was 50 percent more than that of the original. After the various increases in budget, The Empire Strikes Back became one of the most expensive films of its day and after the bank threatened to pull his loan, Lucas was forced to approach 20th Century Fox. Lucas made a deal with the studio to secure the loan in exchange for paying the studio more money, but without the loss of his sequel and merchandising rights. After the film 's box office success, unhappiness at the studio over the deal 's generosity to Lucas caused studio president Alan Ladd, Jr. to quit. The departure of his longtime ally caused Lucas to take Raiders of the Lost Ark to Paramount Pictures. Themes See also : Star Wars sources and analogues Like its predecessor, The Empire Strikes Back draws from several mythological stories and world religions. It also includes elements of 1930s film serials such as Flash Gordon, a childhood favorite of Lucas ', that similarly featured a city afloat in the sky. Releases The world premiere of The Empire Strikes Back was held on May 17, 1980, at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. ( as a special Children 's World Premiere event ). The film had a Royal Charity Premiere in London at the Odeon Cinema in Leicester Square on May 20. The special event was dubbed `` Empire Day '', a playful take the British Commonwealth Day holiday ( known as Empire Day prior to 1958 ), where legions of stormtroopers were unleashed across the city. A series of other charity benefit premieres were held in numerous locations on May 19 and 20. The film went on to official general release in North America and the U.K. on May 21, 1980. The first wave of release included 126 70 mm prints, before a wider release in June 1980 ( which were mostly 35 mm prints ). During the initial theatrical run in Europe and Australia, the short film Black Angel by Star Wars art director Roger Christian was shown before the feature. Though the film was simply titled The Empire Strikes Back in its original promotional materials, the film still started with the title Star Wars on - screen which was followed by the opening crawl that gave the film 's subtitle as Episode V : The Empire Strikes Back, causing some surprise among cinema goers at the time as the original Star Wars film had not been given an episode number or subtitle for its first release in 1977. However, Episode IV : A New Hope was added to its opening crawl from its 1981 re-release onwards. Like A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back was rated PG by the Motion Picture Association of America, and certificate U in the United Kingdom. This original version was released on CED in 1984 and on VHS and Laserdisc several times during the 1980s and 1990s. Special Edition The 1997 theatrical release poster of the new Special Edition version of the film ( art by Drew Struzan ) As part of Star Wars 's 20th anniversary celebration in 1997, The Empire Strikes Back was digitally remastered and re-released along with A New Hope and Return of the Jedi under the title Star Wars Trilogy : Special Edition. Lucas took this opportunity to make several minor changes to the film. These included explicitly showing the Wampa creature on Hoth in full form, creating a more complex flight path for the Falcon as it approaches Cloud City, digitally replacing some of the interior walls of Cloud City with vistas of Bespin, and replacing certain lines of dialogue. A short sequence was also added depicting Vader 's return to his Super Star Destroyer after dueling with Luke, created from alternate angles of a scene from Return of the Jedi. Most of the changes were small and aesthetic ; however, some fans believe that they detract from the film. The film was also resubmitted to the MPAA for rating ; it was again rated PG, but under the Association 's new description nomenclature, the reason given was for `` sci - fi action / violence ''. This version of the film runs 127 minutes. Home media DVD release The Empire Strikes Back was released on DVD in September 2004, bundled in a box set with A New Hope, Return of the Jedi, and a bonus disc of extra features. The films were digitally restored and remastered, with additional changes made by George Lucas. The bonus features include a commentary by George Lucas, Irvin Kershner, Ben Burtt, Dennis Muren, and Carrie Fisher, as well as an extensive documentary called Empire of Dreams : The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy. Also included are featurettes, teasers, trailers, TV spots, still galleries, video game demos, and a preview of Revenge of the Sith. For the DVD release, Lucas and his team made changes that were mostly implemented to ensure continuity between The Empire Strikes Back and the recently released prequel trilogy films. The most noticeable of these changes was replacing the stand - in used in the holographic image of the Emperor ( with Clive Revill providing the voice ) with actor Ian McDiarmid providing some slightly altered dialogue. With this release, Lucas also supervised the creation of a high - definition digital print of The Empire Strikes Back and the original trilogy 's other films. It was reissued in December 2005 as part of a three - disc `` limited edition '' boxed set that did not feature the bonus disc. The film was reissued again on a separate two - disc Limited Edition DVD for a brief time from September 12, 2006, to December 31, 2006, this time with the film 's original, unaltered version as bonus material. It was also re-released in a trilogy box set on November 4, 2008. There was controversy surrounding the initial release, because the DVDs featured non-anamorphic versions of the original films based on LaserDisc releases from 1993 ( as opposed to newly remastered, film - based high definition transfers ). Since non-anamorphic transfers fail to make full use of the resolution available on widescreen televisions, many fans were disappointed with this choice. Blu - ray release On August 14, 2010, George Lucas announced that all six Star Wars films in their Special Edition form would be released on Blu - ray Disc in Fall 2011. On January 6, 2011, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment announced the Blu - ray release for September 2011 in three different editions. Digital release On April 7, 2015, Walt Disney Studios, 20th Century Fox, and Lucasfilm jointly announced the digital releases of the six released Star Wars films. Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released The Empire Strikes Back through the iTunes Store, Amazon Video, Vudu, Google Play, and Disney Movies Anywhere on April 10, 2015. Reception Box Office Within three months of the release of The Empire Strikes Back, Lucas had recovered his $33 million investment and distributed $5 million in bonuses to employees. The film grossed $10,840,307 on its opening weekend in limited release. It earned $209,398,025 during its first 1980 run in the United States and about 450 million worldwide. Box Office Mojo estimates that the film sold more than 70 million tickets in the US in its initial theatrical run. When The Empire Strikes Back returned to cinemas in 1997, it grossed $21,975,993 on its first weekend of re-release. As of 2007, the film has grossed $290,475,750 domestically and $538,375,067 worldwide. 35 years after the film 's initial release, it re-entered the UK box office at number 9 grossing $470,000 from June 4 -- 7, 2015. Critical response The Empire Strikes Back received mixed reviews from critics upon its initial release. For example, Vincent Canby of The New York Times wrote a largely negative review. David Denby of New York magazine called the film `` a Wagnerian pop movie -- grandiose, thrilling, imperiously generous in scale, and also a bit ponderous ''. Judith Martin of The Washington Post criticized the film 's `` middle - of - the - story '' plot, which she claimed had no particular beginning or end. However, this was a concept that Lucas had intended. On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, The Empire Strikes Back currently holds a 94 % approval rating, based on 87 reviews, with an average rating of 8.9 / 10. Rotten Tomatoes summarizes : `` Dark, sinister, but ultimately even more involving than A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back defies viewer expectations and takes the series to heightened emotional levels. '' Bob Stephens of The San Francisco Examiner described The Empire Strikes Back as `` the greatest episode of the Star Wars Trilogy '' in 1997. In 2016, James Charisma of Playboy ranked the film # 3 on a list of 15 Sequels That Are Way Better Than The Originals. Roger Ebert described the film as the strongest and `` most thought - provoking '' film of the original trilogy. Chuck Klosterman suggested that while `` movies like Easy Rider and Saturday Night Fever painted living portraits for generations they represented in the present tense, The Empire Strikes Back might be the only example of a movie that set the social aesthetic for a generation coming in the future. '' Accolades At the Academy Awards in 1981, The Empire Strikes Back won the Academy Award for Best Sound Mixing, which was awarded to Bill Varney, Steve Maslow, Greg Landaker, and Peter Sutton. In addition, this film received the Special Achievement Academy Award for Best Visual Effects that was awarded to Brian Johnson, Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren, and Bruce Nicholson. Composer John Williams was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Score, and Norman Reynolds, Leslie Dilley, Harry Lange, Alan Tomkins, and Michael Ford were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Production Design. In addition, John Williams was awarded the British Academy Film Award for his compositions : the Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music. The Empire Strikes Back also received British Academy Film Award nominations for Best Sound and Best Production Design. Williams was also nominated for a Grammy Award and a Golden Globe Award for his musical score of the film. The Empire Strikes Back received four Saturn Awards, for Mark Hamill as Best Actor, Irvin Kershner for Best Director, Brian Johnson and Richard Edlund for Best Special Effects, and the Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film. The Empire Strikes Back won the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation. The film was nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. The Empire Strikes Back was awarded the Golden Screen Award in Germany. Legacy Darth Vader was ranked as the third - greatest film villain of all time in the American Film Institute 's 2003 list of the 100 greatest heroes and villains, and Wizard magazine selected the ending of The Empire Strikes Back as the greatest cliffhanger of all time. The line `` No, I am your father '' is often misquoted as `` Luke, I am your father. '' The line was selected as one of the 400 nominees for the American Film Institute 's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes, a list of the greatest American film quotes. Yoda 's statement to Luke Skywalker, `` Try not ! Do, or do not. There is no try '', was also a nominee for the same list by the AFI. The film was selected in 2010 to be preserved by the Library of Congress as part of its National Film Registry. It is unclear whether a copy of the 1980 theatrical version or the 1997 Special Edition has been archived by the NFR, or indeed if any copy has been provided by Lucasfilm and accepted by the Registry. In the 2014 Empire Magazine list, `` The 301 Greatest Movies of All Time '' voted by fans, The Empire Strikes Back was named as the greatest film ever made. American Film Institute lists AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Movies -- Nominated AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Thrills -- Nominated AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains : Darth Vader -- No. 3 Villain AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes : `` I am your father. '' -- Nominated `` Do, or do not. There is no try. '' -- Nominated AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Movies ( 10th Anniversary Edition ) -- Nominated Soundtrack Main article : The Empire Strikes Back ( soundtrack ) The musical score of The Empire Strikes Back was composed and conducted by John Williams, and it was performed by the London Symphony Orchestra at a cost of about $250,000. In 1980, the company RSO Records published this film 's original musical score as both a double LP album and as an 8 - track cartridge in the United States. Its front cover artwork features the mask of Darth Vader against a backdrop of outer space, as seen on the advance theatrical poster for the film. In 1985, the first Compact disc ( CD ) issue of the film score was made by the company Polydor Records, which had absorbed both RSO Records and its music catalog. Polydor Records used a shorter, one compact - disc edition of the music as their master. In 1993, 20th Century Fox Film Scores released a special boxed set of four compact discs : the Star Wars Trilogy : The Original Soundtrack Anthology. This anthology included the film scores of all three members of the original Star Wars Trilogy in separate CDs, even though there was significant overlap between the three ( such as the Star Wars theme music ). In 1997, the record company RCA Victor released a definitive two - CD set to accompany the publications of all three of the Special Editions of the films of the Star Wars Trilogy. This original limited - edition set of CDs featured a 32 - page black booklet that was enclosed within a protective outer slip - case. The covers of the booklet and of the slip - case have selections from the poster art of the Star Wars Trilogy : Special Edition. All of the tracks have been digitally re-mastered supposedly for superior clarity of sound. RCA Victor next re-packaged the Special Edition set later on in 1997, offering it in slim - line jewel case packaging as an unlimited edition, but without the packaging that the original `` black booklet '' version offered. In 2004, the Sony Classical Records company purchased the sales rights of the original trilogy 's musical scores -- primarily because it already had the sales rights of the music from the trilogy of prequels : The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith. Hence in 2004, the Sony Classical company began manufacturing copies of the film - score CDs that RCA Victor had been making since 1997, including the one for The Empire Strikes Back. This set was made with new cover artwork similar to that of the film 's first publication on DVD. Despite the digital re-mastering by Sony Classical, their CD version made and sold since 2004 is essentially the same as the version by RCA Victor. Other media Novelization Main article : The Empire Strikes Back ( novel ) A novelization of the film was released on April 12, 1980, and published by the company Del Rey Books. The novelization was written by Donald F. Glut, and it was based on the screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan, Leigh Brackett, and George Lucas. This novelization was originally published as Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back. However, the later editions have been renamed Star Wars Episode V : The Empire Strikes Back to conform with the change in the titles of the Star Wars saga. Like the other novelizations of the Star Wars Trilogy, background information is added to explain the happenings of the story beyond that which is depicted on - screen. Comic book adaptation Main article : Star Wars ( 1977 comic book ) Marvel Comics published a comic book adaptation of The Empire Strikes Back which was written by Archie Goodwin and illustrated by Al Williamson and Carlos Garzon. It was published simultaneously in four formats : as a magazine ( Marvel Super Special # 16 ), an oversized tabloid edition ( Marvel Special Edition Featuring Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back ), as part of a serialized comic book series, and as a paperback pocket book. In the paperback and tabloid versions, which were published first and for which early concept designs were the only available art reference, Yoda was given a quite different appearance than in the films : Yoda is thinner, he has long white hair, and he has purple skin, rather than green skin. For the magazine and serialized comic book editions, there was enough time for the artwork featuring Yoda to be revised extensively, and his appearance was changed to match that in the film. Comic book historians and industry professionals have remarked that Marvel 's Star Wars comics published in the years before The Empire Strikes Back include plot points similar to those later used in the film. However, the film 's makers have not acknowledged receiving any inspiration from the comic books. Book - and - record set Lucasfilm adapted the story for a children 's book - and - record set. Released in 1980, the 24 - page Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back read - along book was accompanied by a 331⁄3 rpm 7 - inch gramophone record. Each page of the book contained a cropped frame from the film with an abridged and condensed version of the story. The record was produced by Buena Vista Records. Video games Main article : List of Star Wars video games Video games based on the film have been released on several consoles. Additionally, several Star Wars video games feature or mention key events seen in the film, but are not entirely based upon the film. In 1982 Parker Brothers released Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back for the Atari 2600 games console, which featured the speeder attack on the AT - ATs on Hoth. The arcade game Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back followed in 1985. The game features familiar battle sequences and characters played from a first - person perspective. Specific battles include the Battle of Hoth and the subsequent escape of the Millennium Falcon through an asteroid field. A conversion was released in 1988 for the ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, BBC Micro, Atari ST, and Commodore Amiga. In 1992, JVC released the LucasArts - developed video game also titled Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back for the Nintendo Entertainment System ( NES ) console. The player assumes the role of Luke Skywalker and maneuvers through Skywalker 's story as seen in the film. In 1992, Ubisoft released a version for the Game Boy. Like its previous incarnation, it follows the story of Luke Skywalker. Super Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back was developed for the console Super Nintendo Entertainment System ( SNES ) by LucasArts and was released by JVC in 1993. The SNES game is similar in spots to the 1991 NES release, and is on a 12 - megabit cartridge. Radio adaptation Main article : Star Wars ( radio ) A radio play adaptation of The Empire Strikes Back was written by Brian Daley, and was produced for and broadcast on the National Public Radio network in the U.S. during 1983. It was based on characters and situations created by George Lucas, and on the screenplay by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan. Its director was John Madden, with sound mixing and post-production work done by Tom Voegeli. Mark Hamill, Billy Dee Williams, and Anthony Daniels reprised their roles as Luke Skywalker, Lando Calrissian, and C - 3PO respectively, with John Lithgow voicing Yoda. This radio play was designed to last for five hours of radio time, usually presented in more than one part. Radio agencies estimate that about 750,000 people tuned in to listen to this series radio play beginning on February 14, 1983. In terms of the canonical Star Wars story, this radio drama has been given the highest designation, G - canon. See also Star Wars portal Film in the United States portal 1980s portal Science fiction portal The Story of Star Wars Splinter of the Mind 's Eye, a science fiction novel set in the Star Wars universe List of films considered the best List of films featuring extraterrestrials List of Star Wars films and television series References Footnotes ^ Theatrical and home media distribution rights will be transferred from 20th Century Fox to the Walt Disney Studios in May 2020. The digital distribution rights belong to Disney, as Lucasfilm retained the film 's digital distribution rights prior to its acquisition by Disney. Citations Jump up ^ `` THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK ''. British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved December 20, 2014. ^ Jump up to : `` The Empire Strikes Back ( 1980 ) ''. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved May 13, 2013. Jump up ^ Nathan, Ian ( May 6, 2014 ). `` Tales From The Dark Side : The Making Of The Empire Strikes Back ''. Empireonline.com. Retrieved December 20, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars Ep. V : The Empire Strikes Back -- Box Office Data, DVD and Blu - ray Sales, Movie News, Cast and Crew Information ''. The Numbers. Retrieved May 13, 2013. Jump up ^ Nathan, Ian. `` The 500 greatest movies of all time, No. 3 : Star Wars Episode V : The Empire Strikes Back ( 1980 ) ''. Empire. Retrieved September 14, 2009. Jump up ^ `` Film features : 100 Greatest Movies Of All Time ''. Total Film. Retrieved June 17, 2010. Jump up ^ `` 100 Greatest Films of All Time ''. AMC Filmsite.org. Archived from the original on March 31, 2014. Retrieved June 17, 2010. Jump up ^ `` The 100 Best Movies of All Time by Mr. Showbiz ''. AMC Filmsite.org. Retrieved July 2, 2010. Jump up ^ `` The 500 Greatest Movies Of All Time ''. Empire. Archived from the original on August 22, 2016. Jump up ^ `` Films adjusted for inflation ''. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved June 21, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Those Yoda Guys ''. Jump up ^ Gourley, Matt. `` I Was There Too ''. earwolf.com. Earwolf. Retrieved 10 November 2016. Jump up ^ @ pablohidalgo ( October 26, 2016 ). `` Okay here 's what I 've got. It is not Elaine Baker in the movie. @ PhilTippett sculpted the piece and Rick applied it. '' ( Tweet ) -- via Twitter. Jump up ^ Alasdair Wilkins ( October 10, 2010 ). `` Yoda was originally played by a monkey in a mask, and other secrets of The Empire Strikes Back ''. io9. Retrieved October 18, 2010. Jump up ^ Rinzler, J.W. ( 22 Oct 2013 ). The Making of Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back ( Enhanced ed. ). Ballantine Group. ISBN 9780345543363. ^ Jump up to : `` Star Wars : The Changes ''. dvdactive. Retrieved January 13, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Lucasfilm Defends DVD Changes ''. Sci - Fi Wire. Archived from the original on October 12, 2007. Retrieved February 18, 2007. ^ Jump up to : Empire of Dreams : The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy. Star Wars Trilogy Box Set DVD documentary. ( 2004 ) Jump up ^ `` Behind the Scenes : The Empire Strikes Back ''. American Cinematographer. Retrieved March 2, 2007. Jump up ^ Biodrowski, Steve. `` Star Wars : The Original Trilogy -- Then And Now ''. Hollywood Gothique. Retrieved March 28, 2008. Jump up ^ Bouzereau 1997, p. 144. Jump up ^ Bouzereau 1997, p. 135. Jump up ^ Kaminski 2007, p. 161. ^ Jump up to : Bouzereau 1997, p. 123 Jump up ^ The Empire Strikes Back ( DVD ). 20th Century Fox. 2004. Jump up ^ Kaminski 2007, pp. 120 -- 21. Jump up ^ Kaminski 2007, pp. 164 -- 65. ^ Jump up to : Marcus Hearn ( 2005 ). `` Cliffhanging ''. The Cinema of George Lucas. New York City : Harry N. Abrams Inc. pp. 122 -- 7. ISBN 0 - 8109 - 4968 - 7. Jump up ^ Kaminski 2007, p. 178. Jump up ^ Peter Hartlaub ( June 27, 2008 ). `` Nah, dude, they were n't cranes, they were garbage trucks ''. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 27, 2008. Jump up ^ Nick Maley. `` A tribute to Stuart Freeborn ''. Retrieved February 16, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars Trilogy DVD Super-Feature ''. Underground Online. Archived from the original on April 27, 2007. Retrieved February 16, 2007. ^ Jump up to : The Empire Strikes Back DVD commentary featuring George Lucas, Irvin Kershner, Ben Burtt, Dennis Muren and Carrie Fisher, ( 2004 ) Jump up ^ Chris Chiarella ( 2004 ). `` Mark Hamill Interview ''. Home Theater. Retrieved February 13, 2007. Jump up ^ Dalton Ross ( September 16, 2004 ). `` Secrets and Jedis ''. EW.com. Retrieved February 16, 2007. Jump up ^ Ross, Dalton ( 2004 - 09 - 16 ). `` 10 things we learned from the ' ' Star Wars ' ' DVDs ''. EW.com. Retrieved 2016 - 12 - 15. Jump up ^ Mark Hamill on Star Citizen, Wing Commander and Star Wars. YouTube. 2015 - 11 - 19. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars Origins -- Flash Gordon ''. Star Wars Origins. Archived from the original on September 1, 2006. Retrieved November 16, 2006. Jump up ^ `` Flash Gordon ( 1980 ) ''. The 80s Movies Rewind. Retrieved February 13, 2007. Jump up ^ `` An ' Empire Day ' to Remember StarWars.com ''. StarWars.com. Retrieved 2016 - 03 - 04. Jump up ^ `` Empire release ''. From Script To DVD.com. Retrieved October 6, 2010. Jump up ^ Verrier, Richard ( October 16, 2013 ). `` Short film meant to accompany ' Empire Strikes Back ' makes a comeback ''. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 15, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Cinema '', TIME, May 19, 1980 Jump up ^ `` Star Wars on Ced ''. Amazon.com Retrieved October 6, 2010. Jump up ^ Doug Smith ( 9 May 2011 ). `` Yesterday 's technology can be a collectible ''. Quad - City Times. Retrieved 26 November 2016. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars Episode V The Empire Strikes Back ( 1997 ) ''. Motion Picture Association of America. Archived from the original on January 14, 2007. Retrieved January 13, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars Trilogy ( Widescreen Edition Without Bonus Disc, 1977 ) ''. Amazon.com. Retrieved February 19, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars Saga Repacked in Trilogy Sets on DVD ''. Lucasfilm. StarWars.com. August 28, 2008. Archived from the original on October 26, 2008. Retrieved November 8, 2008. Jump up ^ Ian Dawe. `` Anamorphic Star Wars and Other Musings ''. Mindjack Film. Retrieved May 26, 2006. Jump up ^ `` George Lucas Announces Star Wars on Blu - Ray at Celebration V ''. Lucasfilm. StarWars.com. August 14, 2010. Archived from the original on August 16, 2010. Retrieved August 15, 2010. Jump up ^ `` Pre-order Star Wars : The Complete Saga on Blu - ray Now ! ''. StarWars.com. Lucasfilm. January 6, 2011. Archived from the original on January 9, 2011. Retrieved January 7, 2011. Jump up ^ Vlessing, Etan ( April 6, 2015 ). `` ' Star Wars ' Movie Franchise Headed to Digital HD ''. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 7, 2015. Jump up ^ `` The Empire Strikes Back ( 1980 ) ''. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved May 31, 2016. Jump up ^ Alex Ritman ( June 10, 2015 ). `` U.K. Box Office : ' Empire Strikes Back ' Returns to Top 10 ''. The Hollywood Reporter. ( Prometheus Global Media ). Retrieved June 10, 2015. Jump up ^ Canby, Vincent ( June 15, 1980 ). `` ' The Empire Strikes Back ' Strikes a Bland Note ' ''. New York Times. Retrieved February 12, 2007. Jump up ^ Denby, David ( May 26, 1980 ). `` Star Wars Strikes Back ''. New York. Retrieved December 10, 2015. Jump up ^ Judith Martin ( May 23, 1980 ). `` ' The Empire Strikes Back ' ''. Washington Post. Retrieved February 12, 2007. ^ Jump up to : `` Star Wars : Episode V -- The Empire Strikes Back Movie Reviews ''. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved April 28, 2011. Jump up ^ Stephens, Bob ( February 21, 1997 ). `` '' Empire Strikes Back ' is the best of `` Star Wars ' trilogy ''. Sfgate.com. Retrieved July 26, 2006. Jump up ^ Charisma, James ( March 15, 2016 ). `` Revenge of the Movie : 15 Sequels That Are Way Better Than The Originals ''. Playboy. Retrieved July 16, 2016. Jump up ^ Ebert, Roger ( February 21, 1997 ). `` The Empire Strikes Back ''. Chicago Sun - Times. Retrieved July 26, 2006. Jump up ^ Klosterman, Chuck ( June 22, 2004 ). Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs : A Low Culture Manifesto. Scribner. p. 150. ISBN 978 - 0 - 7432 - 3601 - 0. Jump up ^ `` The 53rd Academy Awards ( 1981 ) Nominees and Winners ''. oscars.org. Retrieved October 7, 2011. Jump up ^ `` The Empire Strikes Back -- Awards & Nominations ''. Yahoo ! Movies. Archived from the original on May 26, 2006. Retrieved February 16, 2007. Jump up ^ `` How Many Academy Awards Did The Empire Strikes Back Win In 1980 ? ''. AtThaMovies. Retrieved December 16, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars : Episode V -- The Empire Strikes Back ( 1980 ) -- Awards ''. Internet Movie Database. Retrieved July 29, 2006. Jump up ^ `` AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Heroes & Villains ''. American Film Institute. Archived from the original on December 4, 2003. Retrieved January 20, 2007. Jump up ^ Jake Rossen ( August 5, 2007 ). `` The Top 25 Cliffhangers of All Time ! ''. Wizard. Archived from the original on October 12, 2007. Retrieved August 5, 2007. Jump up ^ Michael French ( 2003 ). `` The Common Concept of Indiana Jones ''. TheRaider.net. Retrieved February 26, 2007. ^ Jump up to : `` AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes : Official Ballot '' ( PDF ). AFI.com. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on September 19, 2009. Retrieved July 2, 2010. Jump up ^ `` Hollywood Blockbusters, Independent Films and Shorts Selected for 2010 National Film Registry ''. Library of Congress. December 28, 2010. Retrieved July 27, 2014. Jump up ^ Barnes, Mike ( December 28, 2010 ). `` ' Empire Strikes Back, ' ' Airplane ! ' Among 25 Movies Named to National Film Registry ''. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 28, 2010. Jump up ^ Andrews, Mallory ( July 21, 2014 ). `` A ' New ' New Hope : Film Preservation and the Problem with ' Star Wars ' ''. soundonsight.org. Sound on Sight. Retrieved July 27, 2014. the NFR does not possess workable copies of the original versions... Government - mandated agencies such as the National Film Registry are unable to preserve ( or even possess ) working copies of the films on their list without the consent of the author and / or copyright holder. Jump up ^ `` Request Denied : Lucas Refuses to Co-Operate with Government Film Preservation Organizations ''. savestarwars.com. Saving Star Wars. 2011. Retrieved July 27, 2014. When the request was made for STAR WARS, Lucasfilm offered us the Special Edition version. The offer was declined as this was obviously not the version that had been selected for the Registry. Jump up ^ `` Empire Magazine - 301 Greatest Movies of All Time '', empireonline.com, Retrieved December 1, 2015 Jump up ^ Arnold 1980, p. 266. Jump up ^ `` The Original Soundtrack from the Film The Empire Strikes Back ''. Star Wars Collectors Archive. Retrieved October 26, 2006. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars Trilogy : The Original Soundtrack Anthology ( BOX SET ) ( SOUNDTRACK ) ''. Amazon.com. Retrieved January 20, 2007. Jump up ^ `` The Empire Strikes Back : The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack ( Special Edition ) SOUNDTRACK ''. Amazon.com. Retrieved January 20, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars / The Empire Strikes Back / Return of the Jedi ( Original Soundtracks -- 2004 reissue ) ''. Retrieved January 20, 2007. Jump up ^ Star Wars, Episode V -- The Empire Strikes Back ( Mass Market Paperback ). Amazon.com. ISBN 0345283929. Jump up ^ `` GCD : : Issue : : Marvel Super Special # 16 ''. comics.org. Jump up ^ Marvel Special Edition Featuring Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back at the Grand Comics Database Jump up ^ Edwards, Ted ( 1999 ). `` Adventures in the Comics ''. The Unauthorized Star Wars Compendium. Little, Brown and Company. p. 82. ISBN 9780316329293. In 1980 The Empire Strikes Back hit theaters and Marvel published their adaptation of the movie in a few different formats. The earliest version appeared in a paperback - size book followed by the magazine - size Marvel Super Special No. 16, and then in regular comic book form in six parts. Jump up ^ Keane, Mike ( June 2009 ). `` Bob Wiacek ''. Back Issue !. TwoMorrows Publishing ( 34 ) : 53. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back ''. GameSpot. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Empire Strikes Back, The ''. The Killer List of Videogames. Retrieved February 24, 2007. Jump up ^ Advertising poster Jump up ^ `` Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back for NES ''. Moby Games. Retrieved February 24, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back for Game Boy ''. Moby Games. Retrieved February 24, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Super Star Wars : The Empire Strikes Back ''. Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on March 17, 2007. Retrieved February 24, 2007. Jump up ^ Robb, Brian J. ( 2012 ). A Brief Guide to Star Wars. London : Hachette. ISBN 9781780335834. Retrieved 21 July 2016. Jump up ^ `` Empire Strikes Back Produced by NPR ''. HighBridge Audio. Archived from the original on November 5, 2006. Retrieved December 10, 2006. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars Radiodrama ''. NPR Shop. Archived from the original on May 28, 2007. Retrieved February 22, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Keeper of the Holocron ''. Star Wars : Blogs. Archived from the original on May 5, 2012. Retrieved May 29, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Star Wars Canon ''. Canon Wars. Retrieved February 22, 2007. Jump up ^ Masters, Kim ( October 30, 2012 ). `` Tangled Rights Could Tie Up Ultimate ' Star Wars ' Box Set ( Analysis ) ''. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 12, 2012. Jump up ^ `` The Walt Disney Company FY 2013 SEC Form 10 - K Filing '' ( PDF ). The Walt Disney Company. November 20, 2013. p. 13. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on March 11, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2015. Prior to the Company 's acquisition, Lucasfilm produced six Star Wars films ( Episodes 1 through 6 ). Lucasfilm retained the rights to consumer products related to all of the films and the rights related to television and electronic distribution formats for all of the films, with the exception of the rights for Episode 4, which are owned by a third - party studio. All of the films are distributed by a third - party studio in the theatrical and home video markets. The theatrical and home video distribution rights for these films revert to Lucasfilm in May 2020 with the exception of Episode 4, for which these distribution rights are retained in perpetuity by the third - party studio. Works cited -- -- -- ( 2008 ) ( 2007 ). `` The Secret History of Star Wars '' ( 3.0 ed. ). Missing or empty url = ( help ) Bouzereau, Laurent ( 1997 ). The Annotated Screenplays. Del Rey. ISBN 0 - 345 - 40981 - 7. Bibliography Arnold, Alan. Once Upon a Galaxy : A Journal of Making the Empire Strikes Back. Sphere Books, London. 1980. ISBN 978 - 0 - 345 - 29075 - 5 External links Wikiquote has quotations related to : The Empire Strikes Back The Empire Strikes Back at starwars.com The Empire Strikes Back at Lucasfilm.com The Empire Strikes Back on Wookieepedia, a Star Wars wiki The Empire Strikes Back on IMDb The Empire Strikes Back at the TCM Movie Database The Empire Strikes Back at AllMovie The Empire Strikes Back at Rotten Tomatoes The Empire Strikes Back at Box Office Mojo The Empire Strikes Back at Metacritic The Empire Strikes Back at The Numbers The Empire Strikes Back at Filmsite.org The Empire Strikes Back at the American Film Institute Catalog The Empire Strikes Back Characters Darth Vader Luke Skywalker Princess Leia Han Solo Obi - Wan Kenobi C - 3PO R2 - D2 Chewbacca Lando Calrissian The Emperor / Palpatine Admiral Piett Yoda Boba Fett Wedge Antilles Stormtrooper Planets Hoth Dagobah Bespin Starships Imperial Star Destroyer Millennium Falcon Super Star Destroyer TIE fighter X-wing fighter Y - wing Vehicles AT - AT / AT - ST Snowspeeder Tie - in media Novelization Soundtrack Radio drama Video games Atari 2600 game Arcade game NES game Super NES game Related Black Angel `` Yoda '' ( song ) Films directed by Irvin Kershner Stakeout on Dope Street ( 1958 ) The Young Captives ( 1959 ) The Hoodlum Priest ( 1961 ) Face in the Rain ( 1963 ) The Luck of Ginger Coffey ( 1964 ) A Fine Madness ( 1966 ) The Flim - Flam Man ( 1967 ) Loving ( 1970 ) Up the Sandbox ( 1972 ) S * P * Y * S ( 1974 ) The Return of a Man Called Horse ( 1976 ) Eyes of Laura Mars ( 1978 ) The Empire Strikes Back ( 1980 ) Never Say Never Again ( 1983 ) RoboCop 2 ( 1990 ) Star Wars Feature films Saga Star Wars ( 1977 ) The Empire Strikes Back ( 1980 ) Return of the Jedi ( 1983 ) The Phantom Menace ( 1999 ) Attack of the Clones ( 2002 ) Revenge of the Sith ( 2005 ) The Force Awakens ( 2015 ) The Last Jedi ( 2017 ) Anthology Rogue One ( 2016 ) Untitled Han Solo film ( 2018 ) Other The Clone Wars ( 2008 ) Television and radio Films Holiday Special ( 1978 ) Caravan of Courage ( 1984 ) The Battle for Endor ( 1985 ) Series Droids ( 1985 -- 1986 ) Ewoks ( 1985 -- 1986 ) Clone Wars ( 2003 -- 2005 ) The Clone Wars ( 2008 -- 2014 ) cast episodes Rebels ( 2014 -- ) characters episodes Detours Radio dramas ( 1981 -- 1996 ) Other media Games and multimedia Video games list Shadows of the Empire ( 1996 ) Knights of the Old Republic ( 2003 -- 2005 ) The Force Unleashed ( 2008 -- 2010 ) The Old Republic ( 2011 -- ) Forces of Destiny ( 2017 ) Literature and artwork Art Books non-fiction Comics list Legends Setting Characters Jedi Sith Stormtrooper Clone trooper Concepts Architecture Creatures / Species Languages The Force Physics Planets and moons Events Clone Wars Galactic Civil War Organizations First Order Galactic Empire Galactic Republic New Republic Rebel Alliance Technology Weapons Blaster Death Star Lightsaber Vehicles Landspeeder TIE fighter X-wing fighter Star Destroyer Millennium Falcon Production George Lucas Lucasfilm Canon Cast Changes in film re-releases Filming locations Music Opening crawl Sequel trilogy Sources and analogues Cultural impact Attractions A Galactic Spectacular Jedi Training : Trials of the Temple Star Tours The Adventures Continue Galaxy 's Edge Star Wars Hotel Star Wars Launch Bay Star Wars Weekends Where Science Meets Imagination Lego List of sets TV series The Yoda Chronicles ( 2013 -- 2014 ) Droid Tales ( 2015 ) The Resistance Rises ( 2016 ) The Freemaker Adventures ( 2016 -- ) Video games Merchandise Action figures Kenner list Hasbro Vintage Collection Star Wars Transformers Games Star Wars Pez Manga Force Trainer Shepperton Design Studios Trading cards Vinylmation Star Wars Rollinz toys Parodies Hardware Wars ( 1978 ) Spaceballs ( 1987 ) Star Warped ( 1997 ) Thumb Wars ( 1999 ) George Lucas in Love ( 1999 ) Robot Chicken : Star Wars ( 2007 ) Laugh It Up, Fuzzball : The Family Guy Trilogy ( 2007 -- 10 ) The People vs. George Lucas ( 2010 ) Other 501st Legion Comparison to Star Trek Fan films Force for Change Jedi census Jediism Rebel Legion Star Wars Celebration Star Wars Day Star Wars : In Concert Star Wars Insider Wookieepedia TheForce.Net Yoda conditions Book Portal George Lucas filmography Films directed Feature THX 1138 ( 1971 ) American Graffiti ( 1973 ) Star Wars ( 1977 ) Star Wars : Episode I -- The Phantom Menace ( 1999 ) Star Wars : Episode II -- Attack of the Clones ( 2002 ) Star Wars : Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith ( 2005 ) Short Look at Life ( 1965 ) Herbie ( 1965 ) Freiheit ( 1966 ) 1 : 42.08 ( 1966 ) Electronic Labyrinth : THX 1138 4EB ( 1967 ) The Emperor ( 1967 ) Anyone Lived in a Pretty How Town ( 1967 ) 6 - 18 - 67 ( 1967 ) Filmmaker ( 1968 ) Bald : The Making of THX 1138 ( 1971, uncredited ) Films written The Empire Strikes Back ( 1980 ) Raiders of the Lost Ark ( 1981 ) Return of the Jedi ( 1983 ) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom ( 1984 ) Captain EO ( 1986 ) Star Tours ( 1987, uncredited ) Willow ( 1988 ) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ( 1989 ) Radioland Murders ( 1994 ) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull ( 2008 ) Star Wars : The Clone Wars ( 2008, uncredited ) Red Tails ( 2012, uncredited ) Strange Magic ( 2015 ) Television Star Wars Holiday Special ( 1978 ) Caravan of Courage : An Ewok Adventure ( 1984 ) Ewoks : The Battle for Endor ( 1985 ) Star Wars : Ewoks ( 1985 - 1986 ) Star Wars : Droids ( 1985 - 1986 ) The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles ( 1992 - 1996 ) Star Wars : Clone Wars ( 2003 - 2005 ) Star Wars : The Clone Wars ( 2008 - 2014 ) Star Wars Detours ( TBA ) Related American Zoetrope Indiana Jones Lucasfilm ILM LucasArts Lucasfilm Animation Skywalker Sound Pixar Skywalker Ranch Star Wars The Star Wars Corporation THX Edutopia Lucasfilm Productions Films American Graffiti ( 1973 ) Star Wars ( 1977 ) More American Graffiti ( 1979 ) The Empire Strikes Back ( 1980 ) Raiders of the Lost Ark ( 1981 ) Return of the Jedi ( 1983 ) Twice Upon a Time ( 1983 ) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom ( 1984 ) Latino ( 1985 ) Mishima : A Life in Four Chapters ( 1985 ) Labyrinth ( 1986 ) Howard the Duck ( 1986 ) Tucker : The Man and His Dream ( 1988 ) Willow ( 1988 ) The Land Before Time ( 1988 ) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ( 1989 ) Radioland Murders ( 1994 ) Star Wars : Episode I -- The Phantom Menace ( 1999 ) Star Wars : Episode II -- Attack of the Clones ( 2002 ) Star Wars : Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith ( 2005 ) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull ( 2008 ) Star Wars : The Clone Wars ( 2008 ) Red Tails ( 2012 ) Strange Magic ( 2015 ) Star Wars : The Force Awakens ( 2015 ) Rogue One ( 2016 ) Star Wars : The Last Jedi ( 2017 ) Untitled Han Solo film ( 2018 ) TV series Star Wars : Droids ( 1985 -- 86 ) Star Wars : Ewoks ( 1985 -- 86 ) Maniac Mansion ( 1990 -- 93 ) The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles ( 1992 -- 93 ) Star Wars : Clone Wars ( 2003 -- 05 ) Star Wars : The Clone Wars ( 2008 -- 14 ) Star Wars Rebels ( 2014 -- present ) Lego Star Wars : The Freemaker Adventures ( 2016 -- present ) Star Wars Detours TV films Caravan of Courage : An Ewok Adventure ( 1984 ) Ewoks : The Battle for Endor ( 1985 ) Theme park films Captain EO ( 1986 ) Star Tours ( 1987 ) ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter ( 1995 ) Star Tours -- The Adventures Continue ( 2011 ) Franchises Star Wars Indiana Jones Related productions THX 1138 ( 1971 ) Divisions Industrial Light & Magic Skywalker Sound Lucasfilm Animation LucasArts Former divisions The Droid Works EditDroid Graphics Group ( Pixar ) Kerner Optical SoundDroid THX People George Lucas ( Founder ) Kathleen Kennedy ( President ) Howard Roffman ( EVP, Franchise Management ) Parent : Walt Disney Studios ( The Walt Disney Company ) Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation The Incredible Shrinking Man ( 1958 ) no award ( 1959 ) The Twilight Zone ( 1960 ) The Twilight Zone ( 1961 ) The Twilight Zone ( 1962 ) Dr. Strangelove or : How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb ( 1965 ) `` The Menagerie '' ( Star Trek ) ( 1967 ) `` The City on the Edge of Forever '' ( Star Trek ) ( 1968 ) 2001 : A Space Odyssey ( 1969 ) News coverage of Apollo 11 ( 1970 ) A Clockwork Orange ( 1972 ) Slaughterhouse - Five ( 1973 ) Sleeper ( 1974 ) Young Frankenstein ( 1975 ) A Boy and His Dog ( 1976 ) Star Wars ( 1978 ) Superman ( 1979 ) Alien ( 1980 ) The Empire Strikes Back ( 1981 ) Raiders of the Lost Ark ( 1982 ) Blade Runner ( 1983 ) Return of the Jedi ( 1984 ) 2010 ( 1985 ) Back to the Future ( 1986 ) Aliens ( 1987 ) The Princess Bride ( 1988 ) Who Framed Roger Rabbit ( 1989 ) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ( 1990 ) Edward Scissorhands ( 1991 ) Terminator 2 : Judgment Day ( 1992 ) `` The Inner Light '' ( Star Trek : The Next Generation ) ( 1993 ) Jurassic Park ( 1994 ) `` All Good Things... '' ( Star Trek : The Next Generation ) ( 1995 ) `` The Coming of Shadows '' ( Babylon 5 ) ( 1996 ) `` Severed Dreams '' ( Babylon 5 ) ( 1997 ) Contact ( 1998 ) The Truman Show ( 1999 ) Galaxy Quest ( 2000 ) Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon ( 2001 ) The Lord of the Rings : The Fellowship of the Ring ( 2002 ) Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film Slaughterhouse - Five ( 1972 ) Soylent Green ( 1973 ) Rollerball ( 1974 / 1975 ) Logan 's Run ( 1976 ) Star Wars ( 1977 ) Superman ( 1978 ) Alien ( 1979 ) The Empire Strikes Back ( 1980 ) Superman II ( 1981 ) E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial ( 1982 ) Return of the Jedi ( 1983 ) The Terminator ( 1984 ) Back to the Future ( 1985 ) Aliens ( 1986 ) RoboCop ( 1987 ) Alien Nation ( 1988 ) Total Recall ( 1989 / 1990 ) Terminator 2 : Judgment Day ( 1991 ) Star Trek VI : The Undiscovered Country ( 1992 ) Jurassic Park ( 1993 ) Stargate ( 1994 ) 12 Monkeys ( 1995 ) Independence Day ( 1996 ) Men in Black ( 1997 ) Armageddon / Dark City ( 1998 ) The Matrix ( 1999 ) X-Men ( 2000 ) A.I. Artificial Intelligence ( 2001 ) Minority Report ( 2002 ) X2 : X-Men United ( 2003 ) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind ( 2004 ) Star Wars : Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith ( 2005 ) Children of Men ( 2006 ) Cloverfield ( 2007 ) Iron Man ( 2008 ) Avatar ( 2009 ) Inception ( 2010 ) Rise of the Planet of the Apes ( 2011 ) The Avengers ( 2012 ) Gravity ( 2013 ) Interstellar ( 2014 ) Star Wars : The Force Awakens ( 2015 ) Rogue One : A Star Wars Story ( 2016 ) VIAF : 186700474 LCCN : n80020079 GND : 4396738 - 3 SUDOC : 182088855 BNF : cb14438655w ( data ) Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Empire_Strikes_Back&oldid=802284028 '' Categories : 1980 films English - language films American films British films The Empire Strikes Back Star Wars films Science fantasy films 1980s science fiction films American epic films American robot films American science fiction war films American space adventure films American sequel films Family in fiction Films about twins Films adapted into radio programs Films featuring puppetry Films shot in Norway Films that won the Best Sound Mixing Academy Award Films using computer - generated imagery Films using stop - motion animation Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation winning works Prosthetics in fiction Rebellions in fiction Science fiction adventure films Telekinesis in film United States National Film Registry films 20th Century Fox films Films shot at Elstree Studios Lucasfilm films Film scores by John Williams Films directed by Irvin Kershner Films produced by Gary Kurtz Screenplays by Leigh Brackett Hidden categories : Wikipedia pages move - protected due to vandalism Use mdy dates from May 2015 All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from August 2010 Articles with unsourced statements from October 2015 Pages using web citations with no URL Official website different in Wikidata and Wikipedia Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with BNF identifiers Articles containing video clips Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote Languages Беларуская Беларуская ( тарашкевіца ) ‎ Български Brezhoneg Català Čeština Cymraeg Dansk Deutsch Eesti Ελληνικά Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Føroyskt Français Gaeilge Galego 한국어 Հայերեն हिन्दी Hrvatski Bahasa Indonesia Íslenska Italiano עברית ქართული Қазақша Latina Latviešu Lëtzebuergesch Lietuvių Magyar Bahasa Melayu Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Română Русский Scots Simple English Slovenčina Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska ไทย Türkçe Українська 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 25 September 2017, at 04 : 44. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: when was star wars the empire strikes back made
Answer: 1980