Yoda’s Backwards Speech in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back Explained by George Lucas
The Empire Strikes Back in Hollywood, George Lucas shared the reason behind Yoda’s unique way of speaking. According to Lucas, he gave Yoda a distinctive speech pattern to make people listen more closely to his words. He felt that by having Yoda talk in a way that was a bit harder to understand, it would grab the attention of viewers, especially younger audiences like 12-year-olds.
Lucas described Yoda as the philosophical voice of the movie, so it was important to find a way to ensure that people paid attention to what he had to say. By giving Yoda a backward-speaking style, Lucas hoped to emphasize the significance of his teachings within the Star Wars universe.
In a book about Star Wars released in 2022, it was revealed that Lucas had concerns about the character known as Baby Yoda in The Mandalorian series. Baby Yoda, whose real name is Grogu, raised some worries for Lucas, who wanted to ensure that the character had proper training. This concern was addressed in “The Book of Boba Fett,” where Grogu receives training from Luke Skywalker before ultimately rejoining Din Djarin.
Despite his initial reservations, Lucas eventually decided to sell Lucasfilm, which included the Star Wars franchise, to Disney. He admitted that giving up something he had dedicated 40 years of his life to was a painful decision, but ultimately the right one. Lucas expressed some disappointment with the direction Disney chose to take with the next three Star Wars films, but acknowledged that life doesn’t always go as planned.
Overall, George Lucas’s insight into the creation and evolution of the iconic Yoda character gives fans a deeper understanding of the thought and care that went into crafting the Star Wars universe.