With less than 14 days till the highly-anticipated release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, creator of the Star Wars franchise and creative consultant on the upcoming flick George Lucas was honored at the John F. Kennedy Center.
The film veteran was honored for his lifetime achievements in arts and culture. A number of Hollywood’s heavy hitters were in attendance to honor Lucas. In a clever appearance, one of Lucas’ famous creations the droid R2-D2, rolled onstage to project Carrie Fisher, Princess Leia Organa, image. Fisher jokingly said, “I wanted to be there to help celebrate your Kennedy Center honor in person, but hey, since you invented video voicemail, I don’t have to be.”
Fellow filmmaker and Haute 100 lister Steven Spielberg was also in attendance to honor Lucas. He said, “He’s a pathfinder and a pioneer like Edison and Bell and Tesla and Jobs. George Lucas’ Star Wars absolutely changed films forever.”
President Barack Obama, who arrived late as a result of Oval Office address regarding terrorism, also shared a few sentiments on the veteran filmmaker. He said, “Think about how many young people searching for their place in the universe have thought to themselves, ‘If a kid from Tatooine moisture farm can go from bulls-eyeing womp rats in his T-16 to saving the galaxy, then maybe I can be something special too?’” Obama continued, “It’s pretty remarkable that nearly 40 years after the first Star Destroyer crawled across the screen, we are still obsessed with George’s vision of a galaxy far, far away. And we’ll be raising our children on his stories for a long, long time to come.”
Alongside Lucas, Carole King, Seji Ozawa, Cicely Tyson, and Rita Moreno were also honored at the ceremony.
According to Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, Lucas will not only attend the premiere of The Force Awakens. However, while walking the red carpet, prior to the event, he confirmed he has indeed seen the film, which will be released Dec.18th.
The 38th edition Kennedy Center Honors ceremony will be aired on CBS Dec. 29.
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