And finally, no one has made a bigger fortune from the force than George Lucas himself. But the Star Wars creator has one incredibly business-savvy decision to thank for his billions.
In 1973, Lucas was paid $150,000 (£114.4k) to direct American Graffiti, which is $990,000 (£755k) in today’s money. The comedy-drama was a major hit, becoming one of the highest-grossing films of all time. As a result, Lucas was given a salary increase of over 300%, and was offered $500,000 (£381.3k) to helm Star Wars. That’s $2.4 million (£1.8m) in today's money.
Lucas declined the pay bump, and instead offered to keep his salary at $150,000 on the condition that he retain both the merchandising and sequel rights for Star Wars. Fortunately for Lucas, the movie executives at Fox weren't banking on the film being a success, and they agreed to his terms.