by Chris Snelgrove
| Published
It's fitting that George Lucas is one of the most controversial figures in Star Wars history, with some fans worshiping him for creating this galaxy far, far away, and other fans claiming he went off the rails after the original trilogy ended. Love him or hate him, he made a very important story decision that worked well into the most recent era of this franchise. Specifically, George Lucas prevented other creators from exploring Yoda's origins, a decision that has continued into various Disney films and shows.
Origin of Yoda
Interestingly enough, George Lucas' decision to keep Yoda a mystery is one he made often Contracts Before Disney acquired Star Wars. While the man seemingly planned countless aspects of this franchise long before filming, he did make an exception for Luke Skywalker's Second Jedi Master. Dating all the way to The Empire strikes backLucas refused to develop any real backstory for him Yodainsisting that it was important for him to have a “mystery” and serve as the franchise's resident “magical character.”
When the Prequel Trilogy began production, George Lucas seemed to be relaxed about Yoda, but he still imposed certain restrictions Disney It seems to still be going on to this day (more on this soon). For example, he introduced Yaddle as a fellow Jedi Master of Yoda who worked with him on a regular basis, and allowed other writers to develop their own Yoda-like creatures. However, we still haven't gotten any sort of definitive story for Yoda's origin, and we only recently learned of Yaddle's fate. Namely, she was killed by Count Dooku as part of his bloody devotion to the Sith.
George Lucas was clearly very precious about preserving Yoda's backstory when he controlled the franchise, but what's even more interesting is how little Disney has done with the character since acquiring the rights to Star Wars. Strictly speaking, the House of Mouse could do anything they wanted with any of the characters, but there was no attempt to flesh out Yoda's backstory or explain his species. The last part is especially interesting when you think about it The Mandalorian Prominently featuring Grogu, a member of Yoda's family who serves as Din Djarin's adopted child.
Yoda Code by George Lucas Slim
The only real explanation for this is that George Lucas's old rules regarding Yoda still stand, at least in the eyes of contemporary Disney creators like Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni. This is probably why The Mandalorian It didn't delve into Grogu's relationship with Yoda despite fans wondering what that connection was since the first episode. Interestingly, Lucas actually visited the set early to help Favreau celebrate his birthday, a visit that has sparked persistent rumors that the new “Baby Yoda” character has the Star Wars creator's full blessings.
In short, George Lucas is the only reason we don't get some terrible Yoda origin story series on Disney+. The back-talking Jedi Master was designed to be the biggest mystery in the franchise and once went so far as to destroy all copies of a trading card that gave knowledge to Yoda's species (it showed Yoda-like creatures worshiping something that looked like… a lot Like yogurt from Space balls). Now, even though Disney owns the reins of the franchise, they have continued to respect the filmmaker's wishes, considering how low-key the franchise is. Boba Fett book That's it, we're forever grateful that Lucas saved us from another bad solo series.
