Original Darth Vader helmet worn by David Prowse in The Empire Strikes back sells at auction for $900,000 to mystery bidder
- A Darth Vader helmet sold to a mystery bidder for $900,000 in Los Angeles
- Headgear was worn in The Empire Strikes Back, the 1980 sequel to the original
- Darth Vader was played David Prowse and James Earl Jones in the original films
- It’s in this movie that Darth Vader reveals he his Luke Skywalker’s father
There is an anonymous bidder, who is just like the legions of millions around the world – a fanatical Star Wars fan.
However, this person paid $898,420 for Darth Vader’s helmet worn in The Empire Strikes Back, the 1980 sequel to the original – A New Hope. The auction was held Thursday in Los Angeles.
The fiberglass headgear was supposed to fetch approximately $500,000, but a bidding frenzy for the movie memorabilia lifted the price tag into the stratosphere, according to the Mirror.
A mystery bidder purchased the Darth Vader helmet worn in The Empire Strikes Back for $900,000
It’s in The Empire Strikes Back that Darth Vader reveals that protagonist Luke Skywalker is his son
It’s in The Empire Strikes Back that Darth Vader, also known by ardent followers as Anakin Skywalker, played by David Prowse and voiced by James Earl Jones, reveals that protagonist Luke Skywalker is his son.
While wearing that mask, Darth Vader said the famous line, ‘The force is with you young Skywalker, but you are not a Jedi yet.’
Once adding all the fees, the buyer shelled out more than $1.1 million to own a piece of film history. By contrast, a vintage Han Solo firearm netted $550,000 in June.
A famous scene from The Empire Strikes Back is pictured. Luke Skywalker and Darth Vadar are pictured
A movie poster for The Empire Strikes Back is pictured. The helmet that was sold featured in this film
Profiles in History, which ran the auction, said the helmet is the at the top of the wish list for Star Wars collectors.
‘[It is] exceedingly rare and considered the Holy Grail of science fiction artifacts,’ Profiles in History told syfy.com.
Thursday’s auction had nearly 1,000 items on the block.
The Empire Strikes Back, the second film in the Star Wars series, made more than $500 million in worldwide box office receipts. Overall, the franchise has collected more $9 billion.