Known for the Star Wars and Indiana Jones series, George Lucas has made a name for himself as one of the few men with the most luck at the box office. Throughout his career, Lucas has made more millions than he has lost, thanks to his spirit of never giving up. Not even a heart attack could prevent him from focusing on his career.
Lucas's curiosity began when he picked up Joseph Campbell’s book The Hero With a Thousand Faces at the age of 19. The book, which emphasizes the ties between religion and myth, allowed him to tap into his imagination and create magic on the big screen. Here are some of his highest-rated projects according to IMDb:
10 ‘American Graffiti’ (7.4)
Released in 1973, American Graffiti was written and directed by Lucas himself. The movie was Lucas’ first attempt at a coming-of-age film and was inspired by the Californian rock n’ roll culture at the time. Starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat, and Charles Martin Smith, it tells the story of high school grads who decide to have one last night of fun before they veer off to college. The film became a box office success, grossing a whopping $140 million against a $770,000 budget.
9 ‘Star Wars: Episode III-Revenge Of The Sith’ (7.5)
Originally, Star Wars was meant to be a single movie. This was revealed by Lucas himself in an interview with media mogul Oprah Winfrey. “It was a movie that got to be too big to be one movie. I didn’t have enough money to make that movie, so I said, ‘I will take the first act and I will scrunch this down and make it the movie, but I’m gonna finish these other movies no matter what.” Lucas said. At its launch, Revenge of the Sith broke box office records, grossing an estimated $868 million all over the world. The trilogy has a huge cult-like following that includes celebrities like Ariana Grande.
8 ‘Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom’ (7.5)
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom was released in 1984 as the second movie in the Indiana Jones series, and a prequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark. Starring Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones, the film was directed by Steven Spielberg, and also featured Kate Capshaw, Amrish Puri, Roshan Seth, Phillip Sone and Ke Huy Qan. At the box office, it grossed $333 million against a $28 million budget.
7 ‘Mishima: A Life In Four Chapters’ (8.0)
Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters was released in 1985. The biographical film is based on the life of Yukio Mishima, a Japanese author considered to be one of the greatest during his time. Some of his works include Confessions of a Mask, The Temple of the Golden Pavilion, and Sun and Steel. Mishima’s film was produced by Lucas’ company and directed by Paul Schrader. While it remains highly rated by IMDb, the same cannot be said for how it performed at the box office.
6 ‘Kagemusha’ (8.0)
Directed by Akira Kurosawa, Kagemusha, loosely translated, means political decoy in Japanese. George Lucas is credited as one of the film’s executive producers. Upon its 1980 release, Kagemusha earned its producers an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. It is also considered one of the greatest Japanese films of all time, having grossed $33 million at the box office.
5 ‘Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade’ (8.2)
Although Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade was directed by Steven Spielberg, its writing was a collaborative effort between George Lucas and Menno Meyjes. The film, produced as a sequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark, featured Harrison Ford alongside Alison Doody, Julian Glover, and Sean Connery, to name part of the cast. It grossed a little over $430 million at the box office.
4 ‘Star Wars: Episode VI-Return Of The Jedi’ (8.3)
George Lucas has his imagination to thank for how much he’s able to put pen to paper. American Graffiti, for instance, took him only three weeks to write. Star Wars, on the other hand, though incredibly successful, took him a while. Return of the Jedi was the third of Lucas’ Star Wars series. Lucas collaborated with Lawrence Kasdan in developing its script.
3 ‘Indiana Jones And The Raiders Of The Lost Ark’ (8.4)
Not only did Lawrence Kasdan co-author the script of Return of the Jedi, but his long list of credits also includes Solo: A Star Wars Story, The Force Awakens, The Empire Strikes Back and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Upon its release, Raiders of the Lost Ark became the highest-grossing film of 1983, recording sales of $475 million against an estimated $32 to $42 million budget.
2 ‘Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope’ (8.6)
Starring Mark Hamil, Harrison Ford, James Earl Jones, and Carrie Fisher to name but a few, A New Hope was George Lucas's inaugural project, which premiered in 1977. At the time, Lucas, who knew he’d be making more films, negotiated a merchandise deal, choosing to take lesser pay. The success of A New Hope paid off for Lucas. Besides grossing $775 million against an $11 million budget, he did get to exploit his merchandise end of the deal, which included toys, games, and clothing.
1 ‘Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back’ (8.7)
Directed by Irvin Kershner, The Empire Strikes Back is the second installment in the Star Wars series, and was as successful as the first one. The film grossed an estimated $540 million at the box office against a $30 million budget. Its timeline was set at three years after the destruction of the Death Star. It has earned public approval as the best of the Star Wars series and is preserved at the National Film Registry.
