Editing Star Destroyer (section)

=== Concept and design ===

In draft scripts for the film that would become ''Star Wars'', the term "Stardestroyer" refers to two-man fighters flown by what would become the [[Galactic Empire (Star Wars)|Galactic Empire]].<ref name="SW.comISD" /> The film's second draft features four Star Destroyers chasing a single Rebel ship,<ref name="taylor-115">[[#taylor|Taylor]], p. 115</ref> but the tremendous costs incurred by [[Industrial Light & Magic]] (ILM) when production began helped lead Lucas to use a single "terrifyingly large" Star Destroyer instead of four.<ref name="taylor-121-22">[[#taylor|Taylor]], pp. 121-22</ref> ILM built a {{convert|91|cm|sp=us|adj=on}} shooting model that was about half the size of the model for the ''Tantive IV'' the Star Destroyer was chasing.<ref name="SW.comISD" /> Lucas asked ILM to build a larger Star Destroyer model to match the ''Tantive IV''<nowiki/>'s scale, but ILM convinced him that the [[Dykstraflex]] camera invented for the film made this unnecessary.<ref name="taylor-171-73">[[#taylor|Taylor]], p. 171-73</ref> Nevertheless, they added additional hull details to the Star Destroyer model.<ref name="taylor-171-73" /> The 13-second opening shot was the first special effects piece ILM completed,<ref name="taylor-171-73" /> and its success was an essential test for the Dykstraflex.<ref name="taylor-171-73" />

ILM built a {{convert|259|cm|sp=us|adj=on}} Star Destroyer, equipped with internal lighting to provide a better sense of scale, for ''The Empire Strikes Back'' (1980).<ref name="SW.comISD" />  According to chief model maker Lorne Peterson, the new Star Destroyer model was scaled to appear two and a half miles long, though their official length was revised in later sources.<ref name="Walker45">{{cite book|last=Walker|first=Landry|title=The Moviemaking Magic of Star Wars: Ships + Battles|publisher=Abrams Books|date=2019|location=United States|pages=45|isbn=978-1-4197-3633-9}}</ref>

The ''Imperial I''-class Star Destroyers are white, as shown in ''A New Hope'', ''[[Rogue One: A Star Wars Story|Rogue One]]'', and ''[[Solo: A Star Wars Story|Solo]]''. The ''Imperial II''-class Star Destroyers in ''The Empire Strikes Back'' and ''Return of the Jedi'' are grey.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2016/4/7/11383684/rogue-one-star-wars-trailer-theory|title = Why the Star Destroyer looks different in the Rogue One: A Star Wars Story trailer|date = 7 April 2016}}</ref>