Sketching Star Wars

You didn't think the actors playing Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader just showed up on set one day and improvised their climactic battle scene, did you?

Star Wars Storyboards: The Original Trilogy (Abrams) shows just how much pre-planning went into the original iconic trilogy. From sketched scenes that never made it into the films, to drawings of what would become the movies' quintessential moments, Lucasfilm offered up its archives for the book, which was released just ahead of this week's Star Wars: Episode VII cast announcements.

Below, nerd out with images from A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi.

**All Images: (C) 2014 Lucasfilm Ltd. And TM. All Rights Reserved. Used Under Authorization**

(Purchase the book via Abrams' website)