Why One 49-Year-Old Star Wars Prop Sold For Over $1 Million

Considering how wildly popular Star Wars has been for nearly 50 years, it’s no surprise that people have a great deal of interest in owning pieces of merchandise and memorabilia connected to the franchise. Just about every fan of the galaxy far, far away has their own collection, seeking out all the toys, posters, apparel, and more that they can find. Then there are those who go the extra mile and are willing to spend an exorbitant amount of money to earn a piece of Star Wars history itself. Some of the most coveted items are screen-used props from the movies and TV shows, many of which are auctioned off.

For example, Darth Vader’s lightsaber was recently sold for a cool $3.6 million, illustrating collectors will truly spare no expense when it comes to Star Wars props. Before Vader’s lightsaber, a different classic Star Wars weapon was auctioned for its own outrageous sum. In 2022, Han Solo’s DL-44 blaster from Star Wars: A New Hope was sold for $1.057 million (via New York Post). That’s not as much as what Vader’s lightsaber went for, but it’s still a hefty bid. And when one considers the rich history of this particular prop, the willingness to part with $1 million becomes more understandable.

Han Solo’s Blaster Is a Rare Piece of Hollywood History

Any screen-used movie prop is a premier item, but a case can be made that Han Solo’s blaster is in a league of its own. For starters, the New York Post article mentions that the prop was “the last surviving example of three models” that were made for the first three Star Wars films. The one that sold for over $1 million was used by Harrison Ford in the original 1977 movie before it was “reported missing,” meaning the prop department had to build new blasters for the sequels. So, this specific gun was the one and only that was available, which certainly increased demand to own it. Perhaps that’s why the winning bid blew past the item’s valuation.

If this prop was only used on Star Wars: A New Hope, that would be significant enough, but there’s more to the story. Before it became a signature staple of the galaxy far, far away, Han Solo’s trusty DL-44 blaster started life as Frank Sinatra’s gun in the 1967 thriller The Naked Runner. During development on Star Wars, Roger Christian used “excess military surplus parts” to turn it into a weapon befitting of the strange sci-fi/fantasy universe George Lucas had created. That further explains why the prop sold for as much as it did. It’s something with ties to two entertainment industry legends, which is truly a fascinating bit of trivia.

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It was a perfect combination of rarity and history that drove the price up. Even if all of the props built for A New Hope were readily available for an auction, they would each fetch an incredible amount of money because of the limited supply. However, the one highlighted here also benefits from the Naked Runner/Sinatra connection. It’s a claim to fame that the other two New Hope DL-44 blasters might not have been able to make (it’s unknown how many prop guns were made for the ’67 film, and subsequently how many were altered for Star Wars). It would have been interesting to see all three DL-44s placed against each other, as the auction house would need to specify which one(s) were initially used by Sinatra.

Bids for the props Ford used in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi would undoubtedly be high as well, a testament to the enduring legacy and popularity of the original Star Wars trilogy. But a case can be made the price wouldn’t reach the level of this New Hope blaster. Perhaps if the prop wasn’t originally lost and made it through the entire trilogy before being sold off, it could have broken a record.

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