Star Wars was the third film directed by George Lucas. What were the first two?

Long before he created a galaxy far, far away, George Lucas began his feature film career with two very different movies. His directorial debut was an austere, dystopian science-fiction film from 1971 called THX 1138. An expansion of his award-winning student project, the film depicts a chilling, state-controlled future. While not a commercial success at the time, it established his talent for world-building and innovative sound design, a skill that would later become his trademark.

For his second feature, Lucas pivoted dramatically. Released in 1973, American Graffiti was a nostalgic, rock-and-roll-fueled coming-of-age story about a group of teenagers on their last night of summer vacation in 1962. Made on a shoestring budget, the film was a massive, unexpected blockbuster. Its phenomenal success is what gave Lucas the Hollywood clout and financial backing to pursue his dream project: a space opera that would become Star Wars. The film also featured a supporting role for a young actor named Harrison Ford, whom Lucas would remember a few years later when casting a certain charming smuggler.

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