The Star Wars franchise is one of the most iconic brands in the world. Ever since its release in May of 1977, the series has inspired generations of individuals with its fantastical setting, relatable characters, and engaging philosophies. Whenever something is popular, there is most definitely going to be somebody who wants to poke fun at it.

In 1987, comedy legend Mel Brooks wrote, directed, produced, and acted in the film Spaceballs, a film that satirized the popularity of Star Wars while also throwing in a few references to other franchises like Star Trek, Planet of the Apes and Alien. Alongside Brooks, the film stars John Candy, Bill Pullman, Rick Moranis, Daphnie Zuniga, and Joan Rivers.

The story mostly follows a similar path that was established in A New Hope, with a smuggler and his hairy sidekick rescuing an endangered princess from an evil space empire. There are also a few other details from The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi with characters like Yogurt and Pizza the Hutt. It spoofs many elements of the story, such as the force, now called “The Schwartz.”



While the film wasn’t a hit at the box office when it was first released, its home video sales made it a comedy classic, with many lines from the film being quoted as memes online. There was even a short-lived Spaceballs animated series from 2008 to 2009.

You might wonder, “If it’s a classic, where is all of the merchandise?”

Well, there’s a reason for that. When Mel Brooks wanted to make the film he felt it best to ask permission from George Lucas himself if it was okay to parody his work. Lucas gave his permission, but on one condition: that absolutely no merchandise would be made for the film.

This element was subtly mentioned in the film with the famous “Merchandising” sequence in the film.

So, why did George ask that no merchandise be made? Simple, because he didn’t want to risk any Spaceballs merchandise cutting into sales of Star Wars merchandise. He didn’t want people buying a Dark Helmet figure over a Darth Vader figure. It was nothing personal, just business.



Since then, fans have had to rely on making their own custom figures and merchandise. Many differ in quality depending on who makes them. Though it is sure to make any hardcore fan happy.

With Disney now owning the Star Wars franchise, it isn’t known if any of that has changed. Now Mel Brooks is talking about the possibility of a sequel after he did History of the World Part II. Perhaps we could finally see something come to fruition decades later.

What do you think? Should there be some form of Spaceballs merchandise all these years later? Would you want to buy some?