Test Footage From Abandoned 'Star Wars: Underworld' TV Series Reportedly Surfaces

Test footage from George Lucas‘ previously scrapped television series from 2005 Star Wars: Underworld has surfaced, showcasing a gritty, expensive take on the Star Wars universe before Disney +’s The Mandalorian. In the nearly 10-minute footage above, a mysterious figure clad in robes is on the streets of Coruscant in an attempt to grab plans for an Imperial Star Destroyer. She goes to buy a ship once the mission is accomplished, however, a group of Stormtroopers notices her and after a brief conversation, a firefight ensues. There is also another clip that showcases the behind-the-scenes making of the action footage.

Although the clips recently surfaced on YouTube, the footage has been available online for a while on Vimeo from visual effects studio Stargate Studios. The show was originally announced by Lucas during a Star Wars Celebration in 2005, with the creator coming out once again in 2011 to say over 50 scripts were completed for the show. It appears Lucas had budgeting problems for the cinematic series at the time, long before streaming services and HBO were pouring millions into single episodes.

“Right now, it looks like the Star Wars features. But we have to figure out a way to make it at about a tenth of the cost of the features because it’s television,” Lucas said on G4’s Attack of the Show.

In other entertainment news, an anime movie based on The Witcher is coming to Netflix.

Test footage from George Lucas’ scrapped #StarWars: UNDERWORLD television series has leaked online! https://t.co/06lz6AF7Oe pic.twitter.com/UfofGYNx2f

— Star Wars Direct (@StarWars_Direct) January 30, 2020