Despite creating one of the most iconic sci-fi franchises to date, George Lucas has never stepped onto the stage at San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC) — until now, that is. The father of Star Wars made his first-ever appearance at SDCC 2025 on 27 July, closing out the four-day annual affair with a first look at the long-anticipated Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.
The panel, which was one of the widely attended with over 6,000 attendees, was narrated by Oscar nominee Queen Latifah, and joined by three-time Oscar winner Guillermo del Toro and Oscar-winning Death Becomes Her production designer Doug Chiang.
“This is a temple to the people’s art,” said Lucas, with del Toro adding, “What is important to me, what is magical, is not a man and his collection, it’s a lineage of images. We are in a critical moment in which one thing they like to disappear is the past.”
“And this is memorialising a popular, vociferous, and eloquent moment in our visual past that belongs to all of us. And the museum celebrates this,” the Mexican filmmaker finished.
As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, the video presentation unveiled the interior of the space (that has no right angles anywhere, apparently) and images that will be in the collection, including a cover of DC Comics’ Mystery in Space, the first-ever Flash Gordon comic strip, a cover of 1950s EC comic Tales from the Crypt; strips of Peanuts and Garfield, art ranging from Brian Bolland and Hellboy creator Mike Mignola to underground cartoonist Robert Crumb, Windsor McKay and Moebius, and art of Astro Boy and Scrooge McDuck.
Visitors can also expect concept and storyboard art from Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark by Ralph McQuarrie and Jim Steranko, alongside the props of starships and speeders from various Star Wars instalments. Additionally, never-before-seen pieces from Norman Rockwell, Frida Kahlo, Jessie Willcox Smith, and more were shown.
“It’s one thing that this kind of art [featured] will celebrate because of science fiction. Science fiction is a myth, but we have made it real,” explained Lucas about the science fiction artworks set to be exhibited. “Humans made it real because of science fiction books and art that makes people say, ‘Oh, we could go to the moon,’ and once that idea is implemented, then we believe we could do it.”
The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art has been a long time coming. The attraction was first announced in 2016 and was initially scheduled to begin construction in Chicago near Lake Michigan. It will now open sometime in 2026.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
Ting Wei
