Some Star Wars movies divide the community, but probably every fan agrees that the Holiday Special is terrible, at least all who have seen it. There are no official ways to watch it, although the Special introduced one of the coolest characters in the series.
What happens in The Star Wars Holiday Special? At its core, it’s about Chewbacca’s family on Kashyyyk, preparing for a celebration that is basically Christmas. Han Solo and Chewbacca fly there as well. While the family waits for the two, many confusing scenes are shown with people dancing or singing.
The movie is a true fever dream and can’t be compared to anything else from the franchise. It is so notorious for its poor quality that George Lucas allegedly wanted to destroy all copies. Fans are also not thrilled about the new Star Wars series: “Even Harry Potter is more Star Wars than this nonsense” – The latest Star Wars from Disney lands a negative record
Soon you can dive into a new adventure in the Star Wars universe:
The most curious case of a Star Wars film
The show aired in 1978, just a year after the first film and before the second one. The Holiday Special was made specifically for television, which is why the budget wasn’t particularly high. Interestingly, you can’t officially watch the Special, even though you have Star Wars Vintage on Disney Plus.
Under this banner, you can watch the first Clone Wars miniseries or the two Ewok movies, which were also produced for television. However, the Holiday Special is not included. You won’t find it on DVDs or Blu-ray either. The only options are on YouTube.
What’s curious about the film is also the many actors you know. Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, and Carrie Fisher all appear in the Holiday Special. The myth around the film goes so far that George Lucas is said to have even said: If I had the time and a sledgehammer, I would search for every copy of the show and destroy it.
However, this quote is hard to prove, as there is no original source for it.
Despite its notorious quality, the film introduced one of the universe’s most popular characters, Boba Fett, two years before The Empire Strikes Back. In an animated sequence of the film (yes, there was also one), Boba Fett helps our heroes before it turns out that he works for Darth Vader. In the same year, the design of the character was already seen at a parade (via dorksiteoftheforce.com).
Harrison Ford denies his participation. In 2005, Ford was asked by Conan O’Brien (via YouTube) about the Holiday Special. Ford initially reacts in panic until he responds to O’Brien that he can’t remember such a thing. Then he is shown a clip and afterwards, Ford simply says: Thank you.
In the meantime, there is also a documentary about the Special called A Disturbance in the Force
. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been released in Germany yet. Have you seen the Holiday Special? Let us know your opinion on it in the comments. If you have always wondered why Chewbacca tilts his head, you can find out here: That’s why Chewbacca tilts his head so often in the “Star Wars” films
