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Except they wouldn't have had a trademark in 1977 because titles aren't eligible for trademark unless they're part of a series, and Lucasfilms couldn't have demonstrated that they were part of a series because they weren't. So when Columbia gives Mark Hamill a boatload of money in 1978 to star in their Star Wars sequel, they'd have no problem using the title (and all the various ripoffs would have no problem, either). By the time Empire gets made in 1980 trademark protection is off the table because by that time Star Wars is in such common use that it isn't eligible.
Alright, then they make it "Lucas Film'sTM Star Wars", and people would know the genuine article is Lucas Film's until the franchise got off the ground.
And a lot of this is solved by actor contracts with a clause that says, "You agree to give us first choice for sequels involving you playing this character for the next 10 years", or whatever the closest legally enforceable version of that is.
There would still be possible loopholes, I'm sure. Like Mark Hamill playing an unnamed character who is suspiciously like Luke Skywalker in every detail, but that would have been possible in our world with current copyright laws, and that didn't happen.
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