The assassin droid IG-88 stands to attention in front of Darth Vader, part of the deadly cadre of Bounty Hunters pulled in by the Dark Lord to find the elusive rebel starship: the Millennium Falcon.
A brilliant and economic design, presumably created from what scrap materials were available at ELSTREE at the time, IG-88 became an iconic and intimidating figure in the STAR WARS universe from barely a few seconds worth of screen time. We assume that this important creation was just a basic cable operated prop (note the red wire on the back of its right leg in this shot, probably going up to control the droid's minute head functions), handled by the British effects technicians.
Interview: Bill Hargreaves -- Former Jawa Scavenger and Galactic Prop Man | StarWars.com
I think IG-88 was built mainly from aircraft scrap - they bought a lot of it for making set details on the original film. IG-88's head is made from a Rolls Royce Derwent engine flame-tube. As you may know, the same parts are used as pieces of the bar equipment in the Mos Eisley cantina - perhaps even the exact same one?
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