5 Star Wars Knockoffs to Spice Up Your May the 4th Viewing Party

When the first Star Wars film hit the scene in 1977, it changed the way science fiction was viewed in popular culture. In borrowing from adventure serials and Japanese cinema while offering a grandiose scale akin to an epic fantasy novel, it set the stage for countless space operas and other sci-fi stories to draw from its influence.

This May 4th, as many of us flock to celebrate the franchise in one way or another, let’s take some time to recognize some of those films that attempted (and, more often than not, failed) to capture the once-in-a-lifetime magic that George Lucas so deftly capitalized on. Maybe as we blow the dust off some of these neglected productions, we can add one or two to shake up our Star Wars rewatches—or simply revel in the simple pleasure of watching a B movie in all its earnest and ridiculous glory.

Although this list is by no means comprehensive, here are five space-opera flicks that clearly … let’s say … paid homage to Star Wars in story, aesthetics, and/or all-around vibe.

1. Message from Space

In this Japanese film, the peaceful planet of Jillucia is attacked by a militaristic, imperial regime of aliens known as the Gavanas and their leader, Emperor Rockseia XXII. The Jillucians send out a set of seeds from their planet as a distress call of sorts, and one ultimately captures the attention of some hotshot pilots from Earth.

Message from Space, which was released just a year after the original Star Wars, was produced by the legendary Toei Company and directed by Kinji Fukasaku, and it stars Vic Morrow, Sonny Chiba, and a young Hiroyuki Sanada (who some of us might have seen most recently in the 2021 Mortal Kombat film or Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead). While it’s clearly trying to capitalize on the success of Star Wars—but with some less-than-stellar special visual effects and even more incomprehensible science—one thing that sets it apart is some incredible set and costume design. In particular, the film’s primary antagonist, the silver-faced Rockseia, dons a wonderfully ornate suit of armor trimmed with gold while rocking a six-horned helmet sculpted with a skull motif above the forehead.

On the whole, this movie is far from great—but it still inspired a 27-episode spinoff TV series, so it’s got that going for it!

Toei Company

2. Space Raiders

Space Raiders is the Han Solo spinoff that could have been (although we can all breathe a collective sigh of relief that it wasn’t). Produced by legendary king of schlocky B movies Roger Corman, it tells the story of a group of space smugglers who find a young boy accidentally stowing away on their ship. The crew embarks on a mission to return the boy to his home while simultaneously attempting to thwart a robot invasion.

There’s a lot going on, but with its low budget (the score was simply reused music from another Corman production, Battle Beyond the Stars, which is discussed later on this list), the scope just isn’t able to match the plot. There’s a a fun, less than moralistic motley-crew element to the protagonists that could almost evoke Firefly in some ways, but unfortunately the film just doesn’t capture the feeling of an expansive universe with the three-ish set pieces we get to see.

Despite that, Space Raiders attempts to go all-out in giving us some cool prosthetics, wacky aliens, and fun visuals that mean the viewing experience isn’t a complete waste of time.

New World Pictures

3. Starcrash

The plot of Starcrash is a bit like what might happen if someone dropped all the tropes of sci fi into a hat, pulled out a handful, threw them together Mad Libs style, and made a script from it. In this film, we get discount lightsabers, droids, tribes of cavemen, kaiju robots with boobs, time-stopping powers, and Christopher Plummer and David Hasselhoff.

The story follows a roguish, scantily clad outlaw named Stella Star (Caroline Munro) who is recruited by the emperor of the galaxy (Plummer) to rescue his son and destroy a secret weapon being created by the evil Count Zarth Arn. There isn’t much else you need to know going into it, but it’s certainly a wild ride.

New World Pictures

4. Battle beyond the Stars

Battle beyond the Stars follows a young farmer named Shad who, in an effort to save his peaceful home planet from a ruthless warlord, travels the galaxy to enlist seven alien warriors to help defend his people from tyrannical rule.

For the most part, this film plays out like a grand, family-friendly space-fantasy adventure. If you squint really hard, you could almost convince yourself you’re watching an actual Star Wars film: there are lots of unique settings, cool alien prosthetics, fun space battles, a beautiful James Horner score, a plot modeled after Kurosawa (in this case, Seven Samurai), a bright-eyed young farm boy (Richard Thomas), and even a Han Solo surrogate played by George Peppard who is simply referred to as “Cowboy.” Of course, in Battle beyond the Stars, Peppard’s Cowboy travels the galaxy decked out in a cowboy hat and flannel shirt and always has some scotch ready to pour from a special mechanism on his utility belt.

However, this being another Roger Corman production, beneath the surface it’s just a bit more adult oriented. There are some somewhat surprising instances of casual cursing, fairly overt sexual references (e.g., a spaceship with boobs), and some pretty intense and bloody sequences, particularly during the final battle. Tonally, this makes the film feel a bit all over the place, but despite that there’s a certain charm and endearing earnestness that set it apart from a lot of the other schlocky Corman titles for me. Sure, it’s absolutely derivative of Star Wars, but the creative effort put into bringing an exciting and cool space opera to screen are undeniable.

New World Pictures

5. Battlestar Galactica

I hesitated to include this one on the list because of unlike the other films outlined here, Battlestar Galactica has since carved out its own individual identity separate from attempting to cash in on the Star Wars hype train. Aside from the original series following the film, there was a shorter sequel series (Galactica 1980) and, of course, the largely popular and more tonally serious remake in 2004 staring Edward James Olmos—among other media.

But in going back and rewatching the 1978 self-titled film (sometimes referred to as Saga of a Star World), which served as an extended pilot for the series that followed, it’s hard not to draw direct parallels to the themes, imagery, and ideas that were put forth in the first Star Wars the year prior. We’ve got hotshot pilots with flowing hair, space dogfights, a dark emperor figure, Stormtrooper-esque disposable villains, and some near-indistinguishable spaceship model work. Along with all of what we see on screen, the film shared some behind-the-scenes creatives by employing famed concept artist Ralph McQuarrie and Industrial Light & Magic cofounder John Dykstra to help with some of the visual effects.

While you don’t have to look hard to see the similarities between the two films, the premise here is different: the titular starship, Galactica, is tasked with leading a convoy of human survivors across the cosmos to their mythical home planet (Earth) after a devastating, apocalyptic attack by the robotic Cylons, who are also in hot pursuit. While Battlestar Galactica may have began its run in response to Star Wars, it’s certainly worth the watch to see how it ultimately ended up becoming its own, wholly distinct property as its universe grew richer and more unique.

Universal Pictures

Besides the films on this list, Star Wars has inspired and will continue to inspire countless more like them. What would you add? Let us know in the comments!