Yoda Sounds Like That Because George Lucas Wanted Kids To "Actually Listen"

One of the most iconic things in Star Wars is the way Yoda speaks. His withered, elderly voice and atypical speech pattern of saying sentences backwards makes him an instantly recognisable character for any nerd who wants to impress you with his brilliant impressions. Bored you, he did.

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Grammatically speaking, what this means is Yoda says the object of the sentence first, then the subject, then the verb. Because he's consistent with this rule, he's very easy to understand despite his unique way of speaking. Now, George Lucas has revealed that Yoda sounds that way not because he wanted him to be iconic, but simply because he needed people to listen to him very specifically, rather than ignoring him.

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"If you speak regular English, people don’t listen that much," Lucas told TCM. "But if he had an accent, or it’s really hard to understand what he’s saying, they focus on what he’s saying. "He was basically the philosopher of the movie. I had to figure out a way to get people to actually listen, especially 12-year-olds."

Lucas has previously discussed this phenomenon in The Star Wars Archives, where he explained that Yoda needed to sound distinctly like an alien while still recognisably speaking English. However, this is the first time he's expanded on the matter further, underlining that it was designed to grab attention, particularly those of children.

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Lucas was speaking at an event to celebrate the 45th anniversary of The Empire Strikes back, considered by many to be the greatest Star Wars movie (possibly the greatest movie period) of all time. It coincided with the 20th anniversary of Revenge of the Sith, which... fewer people feel that way about.

While Star Wars might have started with kids (or at least, kids of all ages) in mind, it has expanded exponentially since then. Andor is a mature, narrative driven exploration of the politics at play in the Star Wars universe, with series creator Tony Gilroy also hinting that there may be horror-fuelled stories in Star Wars' future. Meanwhile, other parts of the franchise seem frozen in carbonite, reliving the childhood of the '80s with endless callbacks and cameos from bygone eras.

Star Wars is continuing to expand in the world of video games too, with the recently revealed Star Wars Zero Company from Respawn and BitReactor, a turn-based tactics game aiming to release in 2026. Also releasing in 2026 is The Mandalorian and Grogu. Maybe we'll find out some facts about those characters on its 45th anniversary in 2069. If we're not all dead.

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