George Lucas Finally Clears Up Why Yoda Speaks Backwards in ‘Star Wars’

• George Lucas has cleared up why beloved Star Wars character Yoda speaks out of order
• Creator Lucas made the revelation during a 45th anniversary screening of The Empire Strikes Back at the opening night of the 2025 TCM Classic Film Festival
• “Much to learn, you still have,” is just one of Yoda’s famous quotes

George Lucas is sharing an insight into Star Wars lore.

Appearing at a 45th anniversary screening of The Empire Strikes Back on the opening night of the 2025 TCM Classic Film Festival on April 24, Star Wars creator Lucas, 80, explained why Yoda, one of the franchise’s most beloved characters, speaks out of order.

“Because if you speak regular English, people won’t listen that much,” Lucas told TCM’s primetime host Ben Mankiewicz, per Variety. “But if he had an accent, or it’s really hard to understand what he’s saying, they focus on what he’s saying.”

“He was basically the philosopher of the movie,” Lucas continued of Yoda’s trait. “I had to figure out a way to get people to actually listen — especially 12 year olds.”

Some of Yoda’s most famous quotes include, “Much to learn, you still have,” and “Patience you must have my young Padawan.”

In 1980’s The Empire Strikes Back, Yoda is voiced and puppeteered by Frank Oz, who also reprised the role in 1983’s Return of the Jedi, the third film in the series.

Elsewhere during his appearance at the anniversary screening, Lucas discussed how the studio and his conditions for making the  deal memo he drafted. “I said, ‘I’ll do it for $50,000, to write and direct and produce… But I do want the sequels.’ And I wanted the rights because I’m going to make those movies no matter what happens to this one,” Lucas explained.

His other condition: “I said, ‘besides that, I’d like licensing.’ They went, ‘What’s licensing?’ They talked to themselves, and they went, ‘He’s never going to be able to do that. It takes them a billion dollars and a year to make a toy or make anything. There’s no money in that at all.’ ”

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Lucas shepherded Star Wars from its first entry, 1977’s A New Hope, until he sold his company Lucasfilm and the rights to Star Wars to Disney in 2012.

Last year he received an honorary Palme d’Or at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival’s closing ceremony. The award was presented to him by legendary filmmaker and his lifelong pal Francis Ford Coppola.