THX 1138 remains one of George Lucas’s most intriguing worlds

Before George Lucas showed us the twin suns of Tatooine or the frozen wastes of Hoth, his first feature imagined a tech-driven dystopia darker than the Empire. THX 1138 opened in March 1971 and, 55 years on, largely lives in the shadow of Lucas’s better-known work, even as he tucked references to it throughout the Skywalker saga.

Set on Earth in the 25th century, the film presents a society where sex is forbidden and emotions are blunted by mandated drugs. Work dominates daily life, constant surveillance is enforced by robotic police, and Robert Duvall’s THX 1138 and Maggie McOmie’s LUH 3417 break the rules after she stops taking her prescription and swaps his.

Their first act of waking—sex—occurs under hidden cameras; LUH 3417 is executed, THX is imprisoned, and he eventually decides to escape the fortress-like city entirely.

thx 1138, george lucas, robert duvall, maggie mcomie, skywalker saga, tatooine, hoth, dystopia, surveillance, mandated drugs