“Star Wars” is an epic space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas during the 1970s and significantly expanded since that time. The first film in the series, “Star Wars”, was released on May 25, 1977 by 20th Century Fox, and became a instant global pop culture sensation, immediately spawning two sequels. Twenty-two years after the release of the first film, Lucas began the release of a second trilogy as a prequel to the original trilogy. The franchise has spawned other media including novels, television series, video games, and comic books. These supplements to the film trilogies comprise the Star Wars Expanded Universe, and have resulted in significant development of the series' fictional universe that reaches audiences in nearly every country around the globe. As of 2008, the overall box office revenue generated solely by the six “Star Wars” films has totalled approximately $4.3 billion, making it the third-highest grossing film series ever.