Everyone has skeletons in their closet. For some, it's a hidden family that threatens to derail a political career. For others, it's a college cheating scandal that also threatens to derail a political career. For me, it's my numerous Army of Lovers albums (do NOT @ me about Army of Lovers, I want to have a political career someday).
For George Lucas, creator of the massive Star Wars universe, it's his brief acting career in Japan.
Here's the backstory, and it's short: British and American celebrities frequently star in Japanese advertising campaigns because 1. It pays quite well, and 2. You have very little risk of your stateside fans getting wind of it. Some celebs even insist on a secrecy clause in their contracts to keep them from being shown outside Japan.
It goes back decades; Sammy Davis Jr. loved Suntory Whiskey so much he became a spokesperson for it in 1974, and Audrey Hepburn was a familiar face on Japanese TV selling cosmetics through the '70s and '80s. Leonardo DiCaprio, Jodie Foster, Peter Falk, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Bruce Willis have all done campaigns. Tommy Lee Jones has been the face of BOSS Coffee for years. Hell, Lost In Translation is about Bill Murray flying to Japan to sell, well, Suntory Whiskey again (Suntory also netted Francis Ford Coppola, Keanu Reeves, and Sean Connery for ads).
And, after Return of the Jedi released in 1983, so did George Lucas. But his poison of choice wasn't whiskey. It was Panasonic tech. When these ads were discovered in 2018, there were assumed to be only six. Now, YouTube boasts at least 13 — and all are batshit insane.
Part of it is that George Lucas is an interesting cat. He's done hundreds of interviews, so people know his voice, his cadence, his mannerisms. But he's not an actor, not in the least. Judging by some of the additions to the "Special Editions" of Star Wars films, he has a very quirky sense of humor, which comes out in these Panasonic ads as well. Also, the situations the ad agency put this man through are … well, bizarre is not a strong enough word.
The ads are for various Panasonic devices, something that maybe Lucas would be interested in? There's a glowing egg in a few. Most often, as soon as he begins speaking, a Japanese translation breaks in and drowns him out. Some end with Lucas saying the campaign's tagline, "Itsumo something new," which translates roughly to "Always something new" (two-thirds of the line is in English).
They are all quite strange, and I encourage you to watch them all. They're only about 30 seconds to a minute long (one is part of a collection of Panasonic '80s ads, so it's a little longer; George comes in at the one-minute mark).
To celebrate Star Wars Day 2025, I give you the 13 George Lucas Panasonic commercials. I've decided to rate them by how authentically Star Wars they are, how uncomfortable Lucas looks and acts in them, how out there the concept is, quality of the video effects, and if Lucas says "Itsumo something new" or not. The important things.
Commercial 1, for the MacLord handheld camera, is probably the most timely of the bunch, showing off a ton of work from Return of the Jedi. Jabba's there, with actual face puppeteering. C-3PO is there too, and R2-D2. There's an AT-ST walker amidst maquettes from the film, plus many of the ships from the big battle climax. Lucas is in the midst of all his creations, devoid of context, but proud of everything he's made. Then, he interacts with a glowing egg.
Authentic Star Wars: 5/5. This is Jedi leaping off the film screen, and if people wanted another glimpse of Jabba, well, he's livin' large.
Uncomfortable Lucas: 4/5. He's got the glowing egg which is an absolute banger of a prop, but his delivery of "Right now, I'm surprised and entertained" indicates that he is neither of these things, and might be unsure what either one is. Making "entertained" two syllables is classic awkward Lucas.
Weird concept: 2/5: I was going to give it a 1 out of 5. It's pretty lazy to just show the creator of Star Wars with items from Star Wars, but that glowing egg is just doing so much heavy lifting.
Video effects: 2/5. Is puppetry a video effect? I'm leaning towards "no" on that, although the stop-motion AT-ST is kinda cool. Also, glowing egg.
Itsumo something new: YES.
For a while this was my least favorite of the George Lucas Panasonic ads because you really can't hear Lucas over the Japanese narrator, so all that potential for juicy Lucas awkwardness is just lost. But after watching it a few more times, the animated story of a samurai who fires an arrow to knock down a fan grows on me. The little details like the blushing woman, the people in the boat banging their hands on the hull in admiration, the film crew made of Stormtroopers who help Lucas as he's filming the whole thing with a handheld camera … those go a long way. It's now my favorite.
Authentic Star Wars: 3/5. Darth Vader + the word HAPPY = Star Wars, in my opinion. Plus the extra dressed as a Stormtrooper with the clapboard is adorable, like going to see your kid's kindergarten class in their Halloween costumes, except your child is dressed like a space Nazi who can't aim.
Uncomfortable Lucas: 3/5. Oh man, that shot of him pretending to look excited while holding that camera is going to live with me forever. And he laughs in a way that makes me concerned he's dead and replaced by a droid.
Weird concept: 5/5: It's one hell of a way to advertise a wide screen TV. Limited animations with a little Lucas and his evil film crew in a boat, plus some commentary from Darth Vader (he says "Happy"), that's absolutely the stuff of legends.
Video effects: 4/5. Not gonna lie, the animation is so damn charming and so damn good.
Itsumo something new: NO.
If you got the costumes, we got an ad. Return of the Jedi's Ewoks, Darth Vader, Stormtroopers, and Chewbacca gather hesitantly on the surface of a barren planet to watch the glory of lasers hitting a radar dish. The glowing egg is back with a vengeance, but now Lucas looks like a stalk of broccoli stuffed into a pink polo shirt with a grey collar.
Authentic Star Wars: 5/5. Once again, the Lucasfilm costume shop comes through with the loan of some duds that would sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars on today's secondary market. Chewbacca even comments on the fact that he's standing next to the second most evil man in the galaxy, Darth Vader. This … this should be in continuity.
Uncomfortable Lucas: 2/5. George Lucas is a director, so I get that he's probably not going to be doing the best job with directions like "stand proudly" or "shade your eyes from the laser" or "pose with egg." He does his best, which gets him 2 out of 5.
Weird concept: 2/5: A gathering of Lucas's best-known and latest characters in space is kind of low-hanging fruit. Where else would they be? A field of grass?
Video effects: 5/5. The combination of lasers hitting a satellite dish and the cross-section of the TV speaker make this one feel like it's straight out of a galaxy far, far away, but also in the '80s, if that's possible. Maybe I'm just one of those sentimental old coots, but I still get swept up in the neon futurism of Disneyland's "Tomorrowland," which is good because Disney owns all the things in this commercial that aren't Panasonic or George Lucas.
Itsumo something new: YES.
Oh, wait, was I ragging on the Star Wars folks for not hanging out in a field with that last one? Now they're hanging out in a field. They're like a group of orphans that George Lucas, looking playful as ever in the ugliest tie in town, has adopted and is bringing back to his orphan barn. There's some great Star Wars concept art though.
Authentic Star Wars: 4/5.This one has more Jedi creatures than any of the others, with a Mon Calamari in there, a Quarren, a Gran, an Imperial Royal Guard, Chewbacca, several Ewoks, stormtroopers, and Darth Vader all standing in a field. It looks like Lucas, with his jeans and zero ass, has died and been transported to a heaven of his own making, to the sweet sounds of Frank Zappa's "Watermelon in Easter Hay".
Uncomfortable Lucas: 5/5. There's a shot where Lucas is waving a piece of grass playfully in front of his face and laughing, but they don't cut away soon enough so you get that full second of his regret for doing something so silly. My God. It's beautiful. It's clear that the director said, "George, can you do something that looks like you are having fun and not worried about ticks getting into your $100,000 Chewbacca costume?" And he was like, "Uh…grass is fun. Ha…ha." And immediately regretted it.
Weird concept: 1/5: Not really that wild. Sure, it's odd to see Star Wars characters in an environment completely alien to them (the Imperial Guard in the outdoors is a hoot), but you could get the same effect from dragging a bunch of Times Square Elmos and Minnie Mouse out to a field and forcing them to hold George Lucas's hands while skipping.
Video effects: 1/5. Other than superimposed text, this one's all analog.
Itsumo something new: YES.
Lucas on Lucas action! The greatest sci-fi writer/director in history squares off against the greatest sci-fi writer/director in history! They're talking about the size of Panasonic's large-screen projection TV and the great video quality you get with it. What better way to demonstrate that than by showing off scenes from Return of the Jedi while bantering playfully? I feel like I've been in the advertising industry long enough to know how this came about. It was pitched at a concept meeting, it was one of the middling or even bottom ideas, but it was so easy to film that they just said, "Yeah, this one is part of the 13. George'll do it." And voila, it's an ad that took maybe a day to film (George did have to get into a second shirt for it).
Authentic Star Wars: 3/5. In some ways this could be considered the most Star Wars of the ads, because it shows clips straight out of a Star Wars film. But it's Lucas + Lucas watching it on a screen adds two layers of distance from the source material. The star isn't the footage or someone in a costume, it's that dialogue between the Lucases.
Uncomfortable Lucas: 2/5. This one feels more natural, like someone asked Lucas in an interview how he watches movies and he responded honestly. They did use the take where he scolds the second Lucas only after he's disappeared, so you can see the seams pretty clearly. Lucas is not an actor, and that's fine. I just have to tell myself it's fine.
Weird concept: 1/5: Lucas talking to himself isn't all that wild, and the whole "getting mad at your twin" isn't breaking any new ground.
Video effects: 1/5. Nah.
Itsumo something new: YES.
This one's from 1991, previewing the amazing human-to-animal and stick-to-animal transitions we were sure to see in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. You can't hear Lucas's voice over the narrator on this one, but he seems to be excited about filming sweaty athletes with visible camel toe. Infamously, a video camera morphs into George Lucas, with the lenses becoming his sunglasses.
Authentic Star Wars: 1/5. There is absolutely zero Star Wars in this ad. George Lucas could be anyone. A famous director? A farmhand? The director's stiff, awkward friend?
Uncomfortable Lucas: 2/5. The line reading isn't great, but the facial morphing technology is cool enough that it picks up some of Lucas's slack for him. "To create images is always a challenge" is the only line we can really make out, and it's spoken like Lucas had nothing but distaste for the material.
Weird concept: 5/5: What the fuck was this? A sweaty Black man turning into a panther? A javelin turning into a crane? A CAMERA TURNING INTO GEORGE LUCAS? It shakes me to my core, knowing that with one or two bad client decisions, I, an advertising professional by day, could make the very same ad.
Video effects: 5/5. Oh yeah, this is excellence in video effects right here. Say nothing of the fact that the high jumper's body completely flips itself to become a deer, or that when it happens a second soundtrack plays on top of the first, causing a cacophony of noise. This is just gorgeous pre-Windows 95 video effects, coinciding with the release of Michael Jackson's "Black or White" video that did the same things.
Itsumo something new: NO.
Challenge: if you are creating anything for Lucasfilm media, whether it is a comic book, animated series, or film, I dare you to include Sparky the robot in a crowd scene. I double dare you. Lucas says he created him right there in the ad! That's legally binding, Disney! Don't you guys have any lawyers? Jeez. Alas, Sparky does not have a page on Wookiepedia, although there are six other characters named Sparky in the Star Wars universe.
Authentic Star Wars: 2/5. Sparky is kind of like C-3PO and R2-D2 had a kid that only spoke Japanese, and yes, I'm sure there are a dozen fanfics about that very thing on the internet at this very moment. The R2-D2 appearance raises this to a 2 out of 5.
Uncomfortable Lucas: 1/5. A rare 1 out of 5 on the uncomfortability scale, as Lucas doesn't really do much except show up in a tuxedo with a scarf and introduce Sparky. I deem his line reading to be adequate.
Weird concept: 4/5: Sparky is useless and also amazing. He's either a Panasonic robot or a puppet, either one gets the job done: putting a VHS cassette into a VCR and turning up the volume, which he might just be miming. He shrieks. He buzzes around R2-D2. His head glows. Sparky is awesome and used well to sell a remote controlled Panasonic sound system.
Video effects: 1/5. This one is all practical effects, baybee! Robots for the win! But sadly, I'm not counting it as video effects, as he mostly just zips around the floor.
Itsumo something new: NO.
The movie theater showing Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade puts the release of this one at around 1989, showing George Lucas's long-running partnership with Panasonic through the '80s. That the San Rafael Theater is actually showing A New Hope when Lucas goes inside is its own issue to work out, along with the ticket seller who appears to be dead. I like that it's subtly implied that George Lucas would rather go home with Sparky than pursue the woman who checks him out.
Authentic Star Wars: 1/5. HOWEVER…it IS authentically American Graffiti. I'm sure that's what they were going for, and I appreciate the acknowledgement of Lucas's other works.
Uncomfortable Lucas: 1/5. I don't know why, but Lucas feels more natural in this one. He's talking about a theater in southern California he's obviously been to before, and all the monologue is done in voice over. He's in his element and it comes off as authentic rather than stilted. He even shows a bit of tenderness when he touches Sparky's hand.
Weird concept: 3/5: They didn't need Sparky. Lucas waxing nostalgic about his love of film while the Drifters sing "Under the Boardwalk" is a fine ad on its own. There's an interesting break to show the theater technology, but it still feels like it's part of the flashback Lucas is having. Sparky … they didn't need Sparky.
Video effects: 4/5. I'm not thinking about how the fire hydrant turns into Sparky. I'm thinking about the amazing 3D render of the home theater while Star Wars is playing on the screen. It's got all the good goofy things about late-80s video effects that make us so nostalgic for them today. Just loop this clip and add some Vaporwave.
Itsumo something new: NO.
For this ad Panasonic went artsy for once. The morphing technology is back, plus a sly nod to the glowing egg again. But the dialogue is pure student film. "Red is beautiful," intones black and white Lucas, "But red is difficult." Then the apple turns into a bat, then a bird. Or maybe just a bird. It's pretty janky.
Authentic Star Wars: 1/5. Nope. No Star Wars, no sci-fi, no fantasy. Just a cable ad for a romantic novel starring George Lucas.
Uncomfortable Lucas: 1/5. I think that Lucas does a fine job with the material, which is three sentences about the word or concept of "red." He even has a little bit of mystery to him, but that's probably a lot of the lighting's doing.
Weird concept: 2/5: There's not much to it, is there? It's something I'd expect from a company trying to convince you that their VCR is so much better than their competitor's VCR when it comes to colors, specifically the color red. Add in some out-of-the-box morphing software and a CGI apple, and there you go. It's an ad.
Video effects: 2/5. On one hand, this is all about video effects. On the other hand, the video effects are not done well, even for the late '80s/early '90s. The morphing is uneven, halting, and unconvincing. I much prefer Lucas himself, posing like the cover of the Replacements' "Don't Tell A Soul" album.
Itsumo something new: SORT OF. It's on the screen but he doesn't say it.
When you build a robot as great as Sparky, you want to use him everywhere you can. Was it easier and cheaper to hire a child to star with George Lucas? Probably. But consider that maybe Sparky was built for some other purpose over at Panasonic. Maybe Sparky was the result of years of research and development into robotics. Maybe he was the #1 VHS cassette loader in the entire company and this was his reward. It's Sparky's turn. Sparky gets to be there with George Lucas as Lucas reads a book about flowers that become dragonflies and then swarm a video recorder. Sparky gets this win, not some kid.
Authentic Star Wars: 1/5. I'm not going to stoop so low to give this a two out of five just because George Lucas is interacting with a robot. Just because you have a robot doesn't make you a Star Wars.
Uncomfortable Lucas: 3/5. It's clear that Lucas is stuck in this ad and he's lost. "Sit down, George," the translator for the director tells him. "Pretend you want to show the robot the beauty of plants." Lucas does it well enough. Like, how well do you think you'd do in this situation? Answer in essay form.
Weird concept: 4/5: While nothing about this is "Star Wars" per se, it's seriously weird from start to finish. The room is disturbingly monochrome, with an empty birdcage to show that fragile things die. Lucas pats Sparky on the head like he's encouraging Sparky to learn from the book of flowers. Flowers come off the page and become bugs. The bugs sell you a handheld video recorder and VCR. Lucas and Sparky acknowledge the narrator. It's working on so many levels that YES, I WANT TO BUY THAT VCR RIGHT NOW.
Video effects: 5/5. Yes, it gets a five out of five. These effects are so much better than the apple-to-bird CGI in the previous ad. The flower coming off the page looks like something I'd expect to see today, and the dragonflies are well designed and well executed. They almost make you forget that the concept of this ad is a man is reading a book in an attic to a robot. Almost. You can't really get Sparky out of your head.
Itsumo something new: NO.
(George Lucas begins at time code 1:00) I like this one for several reasons. One, it's for a piece of tech that solves a problem that we are still encountering today: localization. If I want to watch Delinquent Girl Boss: Tokyo Drifters, I can't, because it's coded in PAL format and my DVD player only plays NTSC. The same problem was popping up in 1991 when this ad came out, only this VHS player solves the issue by playing any region's tapes. I also like this because the green screen technology is utterly charming. This is like stuff your high school AV club would put together, only it stars one of the most successful directors in history.
Authentic Star Wars: 2/5. Admittedly, this two out of five rating is all because of the giant projected Earth behind Lucas that reminds me of the opening of A New Hope.
Uncomfortable Lucas: 5/5. This one is so awkward. The script, for lack of a better word, sucks. "Images are a universal language. But there's one big problem. For example, when I try to watch this video tape, sent to me from England, in my VCR, it's very difficult to watch." You don't need "for example" in there. Just point out the problem. It's not an example — it's the problem itself. This is also the only Lucas ad where his breathing really bugged me. He's not a trained actor, or even someone used to addressing someone else. The breathing is all off, and his little "hm!" when he gets the cassette in the VCR is utterly alien to anything real humans do with their bodies.
Weird concept: 1/5: I was pretty spot on when I likened this to the high school A/V club. It's playing around with green screen, just throwing odd things behind George Lucas with his shirt buttoned all the way to the top while he demonstrates a region-free VCR. When the static behind him changes to the Earth, that's a good transition.
Video effects: 3/5. Again, it's pretty good, even if it's basic. Merging two staticky Lucases together is kinda cute. If you had no idea what green screen was in 1991, this would be just as good as Empire Strikes Back to you.
Itsumo something new: NO.
A real meat-and-potatoes kinda ad. George, called "G. Lucas" in this spot, spins a model TIE Interceptor on his finger and we are all impressed. This leads to a pitch for speakers.
Authentic Star Wars: 3/5. Of the three visuals in this ad, one is a TIE Interceptor and another is George Lucas (the third is a CD player). I'd say that two-thirds of the ad is Star Wars-related, which definitely outnumbers the CD player. It's no flyover of the Lucasfilm model shop, but it's definitely more Star Wars-related than the dumb apple that becomes a bird.
Uncomfortable Lucas: 1/5. I'm not going to say "he's in his element" on this one, but he doesn't have to do a lot of work. He watches something that's right in front of him and does it very, very well, excellent gazing skills on display.
Weird concept: 1/5: If this popped up on my TV when I was watching Abbott Elementary or something, I wouldn't bat an eye, even if it starred George Lucas. I don't think I'd even wonder why George Lucas was in something like this. I would just figure he needed the cash.
Video effects: 2/5. THE EGG IS BACK!
Itsumo something new: YES.
No. No, no, no, no, no. Just no. I saved the worst for last. George Lucas films a little girl who grows angel wings while musing on how little girls are like angels. It's creepy. It's like a step up from creepy. I know that this was the ad agency's pitch, and he's got to do what the client says, but this is just distressing any way you look at it. I do not like G. Lucas filming little girls.
Authentic Star Wars: 1/5. Absolutely not.
Uncomfortable Lucas: 5/5. It's not that Lucas is uncomfortable in the role, it's that he's forced to be in this role of Uncle Roy from the old Saturday Night Live. There is nothing right about the girl he's filming sprouting angel wings and then him licking his lips. No. No, no, no, no, no. Not even to sell a handheld camera.
Weird concept: 4/5: It's a combination of concept and execution that make this morally wrong. If Lucas was at his daughter's play and he was filming her and she was an angel in the play, like, okay, that's context. If Lucas was at a playground with a clearly defined spouse and filming his kids on the swings, yeah, that's OK too. But this context-less garden with this JonBenét Ramsey child sprouting imaginary wings in Lucas's imagination is like chewing tinfoil. STRANGER DANGER.
Video effects: 1/5. Not only is this pervy and weird, the visual effects are dogshit.
Itsumo something new: NO.
May the Fourth be with you!
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