Star Wars is a film.
Star Wars is an American epic space opera franchise , centered on a film series created by George Lucas . Star Wars ( later retitled Star Wars : Episode IV -- A New Hope ) is a 1977 American epic space opera film written and directed by George Lucas . Today , it is often regarded as one of the best films of all time , as well as one of the most important films in the history of motion pictures . A prequel trilogy was released from 1999 to 2005 , followed by a sequel trilogy beginning in 2015 .