The Lucases – $5.5B
Often called the wealthiest celebrity figure in all of history, George Lucas earned a fair fortune after the unexpected success of the film that followed American Graffiti: Star Wars. However, what made it so big was the brilliant special effects in the film, which granted him ownership of the technology forever. The success of the sci-fi film, together with a contract that granted him complete franchise rights from 20th Century Fox, allowed him to begin various successful film companies. THX was one of these, which changed sound technology forever. There was also LucasFilm, which made many of his hit films. But let us not forget about LucasArts, which created video games; Industrial Light & Magic, which released a book modern special effects from the ‘70s onward; and Skywalker Sound, which turned things up when it came to mixing and recording audio.
The Lucases – $5.5B
