 To preserve the dramatic opening of the Star Wars movies,  George Lucas (qv) insisted on moving all the credits to the end of  the film. However, although the Writers Guild and Directors Guild  had begrudgingly allowed this on _Star Wars (1977)_ (qv) (because  that film wasnt expected to be very successful), they resented the  trend being continued on this film. First they tried to pull Empire  from release, but were unsuccessful. They then fined Lucas heavily,  and tried to fine Irvin Kershner (qv), but Lucas paid all the  fines himself (nearly $250,000). Lucas then bitterly dropped his  membership in the Writers Guild, Directors Guild, and the Motion  Picture Association of America, a move that has hindered his hiring  choices on later films (see also  _Star Wars: Episode VI 