A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, “Return of the Jedi” had yet to be
released. What did people think was going to happen? What was spoiler culture like?
And how did critics describe Jabba the Hutt to people who hadn’t seen him yet?
Here’s what it was really like to see “Return Of The Jedi” in 1983.
Some movie series open to mediocre reception and find their legacy
years later as cult classics. That was not the case with "Star Wars."
The first two films had become cultural phenomenons and audiences eagerly awaited
"Return of the Jedi," the final installment of the original trilogy. Think back to the
excitement in the air on opening night of "Spider-Man: No Way Home," another threequel,
or even "The Rise of Skywalker," the third of the "Star Wars" sequel trilogy films. This isn't a
new thing. Audiences in 1983 did the same thing we do in 2022: totally geek out at the movies.
[Star Wars noises]
Long before electronic seat reservations were standard — or even fathomable — fans
in Los Angeles waited outside their theater for days prior to the midnight
debut of "Return of the Jedi" on May 25, 1983. And by days, we mean days.
“We’ve been here for six days, and it’s great!”
And why wouldn't they? After all, the previous film "The Empire Strikes Back"
had left everyone with the cliffhanger that Darth Vader was Luke's father.
What could possibly follow THAT revelation? In 1983, the Denver Post claimed that "Return of
the Jedi" was, quote, "one of the most anticipated movies of all time," sharing a photo of moviegoers
waiting outside in costume as their favorite characters. Adoration for this galaxy far,
far away has truly been bringing people together for generations.
One of the most satisfying things about being a devoted fan of something — whether it be a
show or a book series or, in this case,
Star Wars — is being in on all of the inside jokes and lesser known deets. These days,
the sheer amount of stuff to geek out on is endless. But back in 1983, possessing deep
knowledge about any given pop culture phenomenon was a little more novel of an experience.
That being said, if you were there on opening night of “Return of the Jedi”,
you would have seen numerous in-the-know fans wearing shirts bearing the original
title of the trilogy’s epic conclusion. Yep, you heard us right! As it turns out,
“Return of the Jedi” was originally titled “Revenge of the Jedi”.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Did I break your concentration?”
And this wasn’t just an internal, temporary name that was changed before announcing the
movie to the public, either. It made it so far in the post-production process
that the first trailer for the movie advertised "Revenge of the Jedi" to prospective audiences!
Eventually, "Revenge" was swapped for "Return” — and the rest is, of course, movie history.
A good idea never really goes away, though,
because in 2005 the removed word would finally make its way into a "Star Wars"
movie with the release of "Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith.”
“Gooooood!”
We've all been there. You innocently log into Twitter around 8am and start scrolling,
only to find that some guy just had to be the first one to drop spoilers
about the new episode of "The Mandalorian" that dropped in the middle of the night.
“What else did he say?”
Or maybe a headline unashamedly gives away the end credits scene of "Eternals." Do you
get mad when someone spoils a movie or television show before you've gotten the chance to see it?
“You shut up! Shut up! You shut up! Shut up! Shut up!”
Dodging spoilers is an art, but it's not a new practice. While 1983 audiences may not have been
avoiding tweets, they had means of their own to be wary of when "Return of the Jedi" debuted.
In footage from a 1983 newscast recorded seemingly on opening night,
an audience member spills that Darth Vader shows his face to Luke.
“The big surprise was seeing Darth Vader unveil himself to his son. It was very exciting.”
For the entirety of the series until this point, Darth Vader had very much been masked and cloaked,
with no intention or even mention of ever taking off his signature attire.
News that he appears in "Return of the Jedi" in some sort of visually revealing way would have
been a major spoiler. Elsewhere in the same set of interviews, another audience member reveals that
the movie ends in celebration. While this perhaps could have been predicted for those who knew the
movie was the finale to a trilogy, even a happy ending wasn't necessarily guaranteed and still
would have at least been a minor spoiler. Watch out, viewers of the nightly news!
Perhaps unsurprisingly — given the extreme popularity for all things "Star Wars" from the
series' inception in 1977 — "Return of the Jedi" did wonders at the box office and made history.
The New York Times excitedly broke the news a few days later that the movie's opening day,
May 25, 1983, earned $6.2 million, the biggest opening day in movie history at that time.
It beat the previous record held by 1982's "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan."
Despite the phenomenon that "Star Wars" clearly was, the Times noted the success
of "Return of the Jedi" was furthermore impressive because its release day was a
Wednesday rather than the traditional Friday opening. Even on a weeknight, nothing was
going to keep audiences away from seeing what happened next for Luke Skywalker or Han Solo.
“Over my dead body.”
In keeping with tradition, future "Star Wars" films would achieve this same feat.
When perusing Box Office Mojo's list of biggest opening day box offices,
we can see other movies in the series after "Return of the Jedi" broke
opening day records at the time of their respective releases, including 1999's "The
Phantom Menace," 2005's "Revenge of the Sith," and 2015's "The Force Awakens."
It can be difficult to please everyone when it comes to sequels, especially if it's the
last entry in a series. This is especially evident when considering the contradictory opinions from
critics upon the release of “Return of the Jedi”. For instance, The Hollywood Reporter lamented:
“To be sure, the film abounds in action. Some new peril besets Luke Skywalker,
Han Solo or Princess Leia almost too regularly every 10 minutes.
But there’s a kind of desperation about it, a feeling that Lucas and co-writer Lawrence
Kasdan are simply trying to figure out what they can do next to amuse the kiddies.”
By contrast, the Washington Post couldn’t sing the film’s praises enough, saying :
“"Return Of the Jedi," a feat of mass enchantment,
puts the happy finishing touches on George Lucas' "Star Wars" saga. It was worth the wait,
and the work is now an imposing landmark in contemporary popular culture.”
It’s all water under the bridge now, of course, but it’s nonetheless fascinating
to wonder how these differing perspectives affected the expectations of those who had
yet to see the trilogy’s conclusion in theaters for the very first time.
Outside of broad opinions of the film, it’s also interesting to take into account how
critics were faced with teasing details from “Return of the Jedi” without saying too much.
How does one describe Jabba the Hutt to someone who hasn't seen the movie yet?
Critic Roger Ebert summed up the infamous intergalactic crime lord as such:
"[Jabba] is a slimy, gruesome, reptilian monster
made of warts and teeth [...] a cross between a toad and the Cheshire Cat."
Looking back from our current perspective,
we’d say that’s quite a visceral description that still leaves a lot to the imagination!
The British Film Institute’s description poetically plays off of Ebert’s,
labeling Jabba as, quote, “imposingly repellent” and “a Toad inflated to nightmarish complacency.”
On the other hand, The Hollywood Reporter kept things relatively vague,
describing Jabba as, quote, "truly frightening" and "gross."
Regardless of which review fans happened to stumble upon in the lead-up to their initial
viewing experience, it goes without saying that no collection of words can quite do Jabba justice.
You just have to see the sadistic, oversized slug for yourself.
[Eating noises]
In 1983, Jabba the Hutt and the denizens of his secluded desert
palace weren’t the only cosmic creatures on moviegoers' minds.
Just one year prior, Steven Spielberg's "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" had become a huge hit.
“E.T. home phone.”
While "E.T." and "Return of the Jedi" are quite different,
audiences might have felt a similar euphoria while viewing both movies.
Starlog Magazine highlighted reader reviews shortly after "Jedi" debuted.
Brian Richards from Minnesota wrote to the publication:
“[This] is the first film since I saw 'E.T.' that made me feel real good inside. I left the
theater with my spirits soaring [...] 'Return of the Jedi' is destined to become a classic!"
Other readers were not so enthused by the trilogy’s conclusion, and mockingly compared
it to, shall we say, less serious monuments of pop culture. Frank Gerard from New Jersey wrote:
"'Return of the Jedi' was an overwhelming disappointment.
I simply cannot believe George Lucas has given to eager 'Star Wars' fans
everywhere a film which belongs on 'The Muppet Show' or Saturday morning TV."
In the end though, most fans were simply blown away. Barb Trimble from Mississippi gushed:
"This movie is a non-stop ride on that 'Star Wars' rollercoaster. You barely have time to settle back
in your seats after a 'white-knuckler' of a scene, then it's off again for round two. Bravo, George!"
While it's true that "Return of the Jedi" was the final movie in the original "Star
Wars" trilogy, there was plenty more yet to come, and audiences knew this.
Even in 1983, it was public knowledge that George Lucas intended to make nine "Star
Wars" movies and that "Return of the Jedi" was placed as sixth in the story. Quite
the ambitious undertaking to reveal to the general public! Nonetheless, it would be 16
years before the story expanded when 1999's "The Phantom Menace" kicked off the prequel trilogy.
“There’s always a bigger fish.”
While 1983 moviegoers might have known more "Star Wars" was on the way, they didn't expect Luke,
Leia, or Han Solo to ever re-enter the narrative, thanks to Roger Ebert’s 1983 review. He said:
“If George Lucas persists in his plan to make nine Star Wars movies, this will nevertheless be the
last we'll see of Luke, Han and Leia, although the robots will be present in all the films.”
The droids would indeed continue to make appearances, but so would the
three original leads, even if it took a bit longer for them to return to the series.
"Return of the Jedi" was more than just a movie to some of its viewers.
Inspired by its characters, story, and filmmaking technique,
some audience members in 1983 left the theater feeling inspired to make movies of their own.
This included Brad Bird, who at the time was 25 years old and working as an animator at Disney.
Bird would later direct "The Iron Giant" and "The Incredibles," among other films.
In the foreword of the 2013 edition of the book "The Making of Return of the Jedi," Bird shares
that he snuck into a snuck into a Lucasfilm crew screening of "Return of the Jedi" and marveled
at seeing the film in the same room as George Lucas and director Richard Marquand. Bird writes:
"I was now surrounded by the very geniuses who had
brought this rarest of cinematic sagas to a satisfying conclusion in grand style.”
However, Bird wasn't wild about everything in the movie, specifically feeling like Luke's
character had made an unrealistic leap from the hero-in-training he
was at the end of "The Empire Strikes Back" to the confident protagonist he
suddenly appeared to be by the beginning of "Return of the Jedi." Bird reflects:
"The point is not that I, or any other fan,
agree with every single choice George has made in telling his epic saga. The point is that we care."
There are, shall we say, polarizing creative choices within the "Star Wars" universe that fans
have different perspectives on. While today, it's easy to look back on films that are considered
classics and assume that nothing was controversial at the time of their release, "Return of the Jedi"
actually put fans at odds when it came to a new creature the film introduced: Ewoks.
“Point that thing someplace else.”
[Ewokese]
The cuddly, bear-like animals on the moon of Endor turn out to be quite
the soldiers when faced with threats. In 1983, audiences were divided on what they
thought of Ewoks and how they welcomed them – or didn't – into the series.
Some audience members criticized the Ewoks as being nothing but a marketing device to sell
toys. The subject, it seems, was something of a hot topic among fans in the '80s. Good thing we've
moved on past those kinds of petty squabbles about things that we claim ruin "Star Wars," right?
[laughter]
Just kidding. Ewoks are definitely still a divisive subject to this day.
Love them or hate them, though, the Ewoks went on to star in their own made-for-TV movies and
animated TV series – and none of it would have happened without "Return of the Jedi."
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