Maître Yoda is one of the main characters in the Star Wars saga, and it was in particular his way of speaking that allowed him to become iconic. 45 years after his first appearance, George Lucas explains (finally!) Why he gave this particularity to the Jedi with pointed ears.
Yoda made her first appearance in Star Wars 45 years ago, in theEpisode V: the counterattack empire. This Jedi master is wiser to everyone, and he is the one who will teach Luke how to use force. This singular character immediately became one of the public’s favorites and he is still today. Even people who are not fans of the saga know him, and many are trying to speak like him.
Because what makes the peculiarity and popularity of Master Yoda is his way of expressing himself mythical. The Jedi makes his “upside down” sentences. “The dark side of the force, dread you must”,, “In great danger, you are”,, “Many still, you have to learn”,, “Your father, he is”… Many of his replicas are cult, and it is largely thanks to this way of speaking so special.
Everyone knows that Yoda speaks backwards, but so far, we didn’t really know why. It was on the occasion of a special projection organized at the TCM Classic Film Festival, which took place this April 24, 2025 for the 45 years of Star Wars, episode V: the Empire counterattaquethat George Lucas, the creator and director of the saga, explained why he gave this specificity to the little green Jedi.
On the occasion of a question-answer session, George Lucas said: “Yoda has a very special way to speak and it has been done on purpose. Because if you speak normal English, people don’t listen to that much. But if it has an accent or if it is hard to understand what he says, they focus on what he says”. Now, Yoda is a very important character, and each of his words is too, so that we had to draw the attention of spectators on it. “He is in a way the philosopher of the film. So he speaks in all the long scenes of dialogue. I had to find a way to make people listen, especially the children of 12 years”said the director.
Note that the Yoda stamp has also become famous. In the original version, it was Frank Oz who lent him his voice. In the French version, his most famous voices are those of Jean Lescot (Star Wars I,, II And III) and Serge Lorca (Star Wars V And Vi).
