Star Wars sequel trilogy in late 1980, Lucas described how the expansive scope of "Star Wars" had started with an overlong screenplay: He added that he had: In this interview, Lucas also stated that he had "titles and ten-page story outlines for each of" the nine episodes. In an interview with Gary Kurtz in the same magazine, Kurtz said: In an interview with "Starlog" magazine published in September 1981, Lucas confirmed that he had the nine-film series plotted, cautioning: Shortly after 1980's release of "Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back", Lucas had already written story treatments for episodes: "VI", and the sequel trilogy consisting
Star Wars Trilogy script titled "The Star Wars", sharing strong similarities with Akira Kurosawa's "The Hidden Fortress" (1958). By 1974, he had expanded the script into the first draft of a screenplay, adding elements such as the Sith and the Death Star. Subsequent drafts evolved into the script of the original film. Lucas negotiated to retain the sequel rights. Tom Pollock, then Lucas' lawyer writes: "We came to an agreement that George would retain the sequel rights. Not all the [merchandising rights] that came later, mind you; just the sequel rights. And Fox would get a first opportunity and last refusal right to