45 years after The Empire Strikes Back, the movie still holds a shocking Star Wars record. The Empire Strikes Back is largely considered one of Star Wars’ best movies, if not the single best movie in the entire franchise. Even outside what the movie meant to the Star Wars galaxy itself in terms of its plot points and brand-new characters and concepts, The Empire Strikes Back changed Hollywood forever.
In light of that significance, it’s perhaps unsurprising that The Empire Strikes Back holds certain records in the Star Wars franchise. After all, this was the movie in which Yoda was introduced, and it featured the franchise’s most famous plot twist (and one of the most well-known plot twists in cinema history), that Darth Vader was really Luke Skywalker’s father. This particular 45-year record for The Empire Strikes Back is nevertheless truly surprising.
The Empire Strikes Back’s Planets Have Yet To Appear Again In Live-Action
H๏τh, Dagobah, And Bespin Haven’t Had On-Screen Returns In Live-Action
Shockingly, all three main Star Wars planets in The Empire Strikes Back—H๏τh, Bespin, and Dagobah—have yet to be seen again in live-action in the more than 40 years since the movie’s release. H๏τh was important not only because it was the location of such a harrowing near-death experience for Luke but also because it was the site of a Rebel base. Yet, it has not had another appearance in live-action throughout Star Wars movies and TV shows.
All three main Star Wars planets in The Empire Strikes Back—H๏τh, Bespin, and Dagobah—have yet to be seen again in live-action in the more than 40 years since the movie’s release.
Likewise, Dagobah, which was Yoda’s home for the many years between the fall of the Jedi and Luke’s arrival, hasn’t returned in live-action. Given the nearly sacred nature of this location in Star Wars, this is perhaps the most surprising absence of them all. Even Bespin’s beautiful Cloud City hasn’t been seen in live-action in decades.
Interestingly, Dagobah nearly had another live-action appearance in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. In a scene that was ultimately deleted, Yoda would have been shown arriving on Dagobah, connecting directly to his storyline in The Empire Strikes Back. While this would have been a nice connection, it makes sense that this was cut from the movie. It was already established that this is where Yoda was going, so showing it was unnecessary in a movie that already had so much ground to cover.
Even These Planets’ Animated Appearances Occur Sparingly
The Planets Do Have Appearances In Star Wars’ Animated Shows, But They Are Minimal
Although Dagobah, H๏τh, and Bespin haven’t appeared in live-action since The Empire Strikes Back, they have had a few animated appearances throughout the Star Wars timeline. In every case, though, these appearances were fleeting. Dagobah was shown in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, specifically when Master Yoda traveled to the planet and connected with the fallen Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn.
This plot set the stage for Yoda to ultimately return to the planet and revealed how Yoda was able to learn how to become a Force ghost once he died. H๏τh has also had some animated appearances in Star Wars, including in Star Wars Forces of Destiny season 1, episode 5, “Beasts of Echo Base,” in which Leia Organa and R2-D2 search for Chewbacca on Echo Base. Bespin has been shown even less than H๏τh and Dagobah on screen, although it has had appearances in many Star Wars comics and video games, including canonical stories.
When, Or Will, We See These Planets Again?
It’s Unclear If These Planets Will Ever Appear In Live-Action Again
With the significance these planets had in the original trilogy, particularly related to the Rebellion and the Jedi, it will be interesting to see if they resurface in any of Star Wars’ upcoming movies or shows. It would particularly make sense to see places like H๏τh in The Mandalorian & Grogu, as Din Djarin is now confirmed to be working with the New Republic. Presumably, the New Republic will still have some sort of affiliation with the various Rebel bases, whether that be continuing to use them as bases, deconstructing the military features of these areas, or something else.
Presumably, the New Republic will still have some sort of affiliation with the various Rebel bases.
It would also be incredible to see Dagobah again, which may depend on whether Luke Skywalker continues to play a role in Star Wars TV shows in this new era. So far, Luke has had a cameo in The Mandalorian season 2 ending and a slightly more detailed arc in The Book of Boba Fett, but it’s unclear whether he will return. However, the opportunity to see a live-action return to Dagobah, perhaps with Ahsoka getting to see where Yoda was hiding all those years at some point in Ahsoka, would be absolutely brilliant.
It’s shocking to realize that these major Star Wars planets haven’t been seen in live-action in more than 40 years. This is due in large part to how many new planets have been introduced in the franchise since, though, and how much more attention has been given to planets outside those that were important during and immediately following the Dark Times. Nevertheless, it would be thrilling to see H๏τh, Dagobah, and Bespin in Star Wars once again, even all these years after The Empire Strikes Back.
