The 25 most iconic Star Wars movie posters of all time
By Joel Leonard
14. The Empire Strikes Back official poster
In many ways, The Empire Strikes Back is the most romantic of the original trilogy, as this is the movie where the relationship between Han and Leia is really explored. That tone is evident in this first official poster for The Empires Strikes Back, often referred to as the Gone With the Wind poster.
Drawing unmistakable inspiration from the classic Gone With the Wind poster drawn for the 1967 re-release of the movie (the Gone With the Wind poster you’re picturing in your head right now) this poster has the romance of the movie in full display. Just like the main poster for the previous Star Wars movie, the characters on this poster don’t take up a lot of space, but instead let the negative space help set the tone the poster is trying to convey.
In this case, the bottom of the poster features the unforgiving world of Hoth, a stark difference from the “wonders of space” feel from A New Hope. While memorable, this poster was quickly criticized by actor Billy Dee Williams for not having the only African-American actor in the movie appear anywhere on the poster, despite having a substantial role in the movie. Updated posters were quickly shipped out to theaters, and every subsequent poster for the movie, up through the 1981 re-release, featured Lando somewhere on the poster.