The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

How do you follow up a genuine once-in-a-lifetime pop culture phenomenon like the initial release of Star Wars in 1977? Well if you're writer/director/producer George Lucas, you use your ownership of the franchise to continue the story but in a unique new direction with a new director (Irwin Kirsher) along with a new up-and-coming writer (Lawrence Kasdan) to take over most creative decisions. You also decide to bring back most of the main cast (Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie F...