“The Incom T-65 X-wing is the fighter that killed the Death Star.” These words from the video game “Star Wars: Rogue Squadron” solidify how valuable the starfighter is in-universe. In the real world, that ship was part of one of the most memorable scenes in the history of film. The original “Star Wars“ was special for a number of reasons, one of them being the startlingly good special effects from the use of miniatures and models.
One of those X-wing models, previously thought lost, has set a new record for an item from the film for over $3 million at auction.
Renown model maker Greg Jein passed away in 2022. Jein worked on a number of projects, most notably “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and various “Star Trek” projects. Jein didn’t just create models, he also collected them. One of the pieces in his collection was a previously-thought-lost X-Wing model. Specifically, it was one of four known “hero” pieces used for filming on “Star Wars” iconic Death Star trench run.
When Industrial Light and Magic (ILM) moved from the San Fernando Valley to the San Francisco Bay Area, some times were been lost. This X-Wing was one of those items. As for where it was found, well, it’s hardly a place beholding of it’s place in cinema history. The 20-inch model was apparently found in a box in Jein’s garage.
The X-wing sold at $3.135 million via Heritage. This amount has set the record for the most expensive screen-used item from “Star Wars” sold at auction.
While that does seem like an extreme amount, remember, this is the fighter that destroyed the Death Star. Can you really put a price on that? But seriously, it’s amazing what can randomly pop up in boxes that really shouldn’t be placed in a box somewhere. Remember how one of Dorothy’s original dresses from “The Wizard of Oz” was found in a shoebox at the Catholic University of America? If there’s any lesson to be learned from this, start checking your boxes for pieces of Hollywood history.
