Princess Leia’s Dress Was Up for Auction

Remember the white gown dress that Princess Leia wore at the end of Star Wars: A New Hope? The one that was thought lost? Well, it was recently discovered in a London attic by a movie crew member. As expected, the announcement brought a lot of hype. Enough to invoke talk of it going to auction. In June, that became official when this one-of-a-kind movie prop, worn by Carrie Fisher, was listed by Propstore, the organizer behind the sale.

How The Dress Was Found

Dress worn by Princess Leia at the end of A New Hope

The dress had been hidden away for years. It was thought destroyed, as was common with set pieces and costumes throughout the 1970s. Unsurprisingly, when it was found, it was in bad shape. There was so much dust and holes that it took eight months to restore it. Textile conservators worked on it painstakingly day and night, redoing the hem and seams. They restitched it completely and even restored it to the highest graded standards. All with an eye to attract a lot of bidders.

Did the Dress Sell?

Unfortunately, no. As per the rules of the auction, no one met the minimum bid of one million dollars. As it happened, the highest bid came close, rising to $975,000, but that was a far cry from what was expected. Projections had the dress selling for $2 to $2.5 million.

It just goes to show that not everything related to Star Wars is a big seller. Not everything associated with the galaxy far, far away gets top dollar. Just ask Disney. While Star Wars is one of the world’s biggest franchises, it doesn’t mean its fans are always willing to throw money at it.

Now that the dress didn’t sell, there have been rumors of another auction — or even a private sale. Of course, there’s always the possibility that it could end up in a museum. After all, the dress is a piece of history and with its restoration could entice fans to see it in person. Only time will tell where it’ll end up next.