Props and memorabilia from the original Star Wars trilogy (A New Hope, in particular) have always been highly sought-after by collectors, who often fork out massive amounts of money to secure their desired items at auction.
Still, we never thought we'd see one single 20-inch model sell for this price!
According to THR, a model of an X-wing starfighter that was used in the climatic space battle of the original 1977 Star Wars film sold for a record-setting $3.135 million at a Heritage Auction in Dallas.
The X-wing was part of the collection of late Oscar-nominated model maker Greg Jein, was recently found in a box in Jein’s garage after being assumed lost for decades. Other Star Wars props in the collection included a Stormtrooper costume, which raised $645,000 when it was sold at Sunday's auction.
“Heritage just set the record for the most expensive Star Wars screen-used prop sold at auction,” said Joe Maddalena, exec vp Hollywood/entertainment memorabilia at Heritage Auctions. “The worldwide response to the Greg Jein collections has been outstanding, a true testament to Greg and all he accomplished as visual effects artist and collector.”
The model was built by Industrial Light & Magic for A New Hope, and the “Red Leader” (Red One) X-wing is one of just four “hero” filming miniatures with articulating servo-controlled wings and lights that were built specifically for close-ups in the final battle, including the trench run.
“This model has not been displayed or modified since it left ILM,” VFX historian Gene Kozicki notes. “For those of us that grew up in the ’70s or ’80s, and those of us that work in visual effects, this model is as significant a find as the ruby red slippers or the Maltese Falcon.”
Kozicki added that he wasn't sure exactly how the X-Wing had become part of Jein’s collection, but speculated that he may have obtained it while working on Steven Spielberg’s 1977 sci-fi classic Close Encounters of the Third Kind, which shared a significant portion of its visual effects team with Star Wars.
"The Imperial Forces -- under orders from cruel Darth Vader (David Prowse) -- hold Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) hostage, in their efforts to quell the rebellion against the Galactic Empire. Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and Han Solo (Harrison Ford), captain of the Millennium Falcon, work together with the companionable droid duo R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) and C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) to rescue the beautiful princess, help the Rebel Alliance, and restore freedom and justice to the Galaxy."