How Star Wars: The Force Awakens Resurrected The Millennium Falcon
"You've never heard of the Millennium Falcon?" Han Solo (Harrison Ford) asks Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness) in "Star Wars: A New Hope." Although the term "iconic" should be used as sparingly as possible, the Millenium Falcon deserves to be described as such — as Han explains, this is the ship that made the Kessel Run in "less than twelve parsecs" and has helped many outrun Imperial starships in the heat of battle. The role that the Falcon ended up playing during the Galactic Civil War cannot be overstated, and when J.J. Abrams decided to bring the legendary ship back in "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," everyone on the film's creative team had to work hard to convincingly recapture the nostalgia surrounding the Falcon and what it represents.
A vehicle that was initially used for small-time smuggling operations suddenly played a major role when Han and Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) blasted through Mos Eisley to evade a stormtrooper attack, and this was the beginning of a long history of the ship's impressive evasive maneuvers. The Falcon has emerged as a character in its own right, which Abrams talks about in the Disney+ documentary, "Star Wars The Force Awakens: Behind the Scenes:"
"The Millennium Falcon is as much a returning character in this movie as any of the people, and there's a very weird feeling about going back to something you know so well. It's a little bit like if you were to say, 'I'm gonna open this magic door, and behind that magic door is your bedroom at nine years old.'"
The resurrection of the Millennium Falcon demanded an approach that prioritized extreme attention to detail, as it was necessary to recreate every inch of the ship as remembered by fans of the franchise. Here's how this recreation process came about.
Scientific precision
To bring the Falcon back to life, "The Force Awakens" art director Mark Harris acted like a "forensic scientist" and pored over "every known photograph" of the ship. In the film, Rey (Daisy Ridley), Finn (John Boyega), and BB-8 steal the Falcon to escape an attack by the First Order, with Rey at the helm, who is able to effectively use the ship to evade the attack and go into hiding. Han and Chewbacca eventually arrive to reclaim ownership, and the duo decides to help out Rey and co. upon realizing that they're also part of the Resistance. Han and Chewie's return further solidified the need to have the ship look just like it used to, and the film's Construction Manager Paul Hayes explained the lengths they had to go to ensure that:
"We studied that, every nut and bolt. I mean, it's what you dream of as a kid, to play with stuff like that. I love building, and to make something like that, every day I come to work smiling."
The creative team had to keep everything from the correct size to texture in mind, as the reappearance of the Falcon was intended to be memorable, which Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy describes as "a huge recall to what the Star Wars series has meant to everybody." The moment of the ship's reveal feels even more impactful after it beats the "piece of junk" allegations, perfectly capable of continuing its legacy even after years of disuse.
Even the cast of "The Force Awakens" was in awe when they walked in on set and first saw the ship, from Boyega stating that he ran "up the ramp, just giggling" to Gwendoline Christie saying that the experience was "completely overwhelming." It was a full-circle moment that massive paid off.