Kershner is best known as the Director of The Empire Strikes Back (1980), the immediate sequel of the 1977 hit film Star Wars. Kershner was a surprising choice for such a movie. According to Kershner himself, he once asked Producer George Lucas, "Of all the younger guys around, all the hot-shots, why me?" Lucas replied, "Well, because you know everything a Hollywood Director is supposed to know, but you're not Hollywood."