A Tatooine scene?

A Tatooine scene?

© ksenija18kz/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Domed earthen huts are hallmarks of southern Tunisia's centuries-old architecture, but the scene we're seeing didn't exist until the 1990s. That's when George Lucas brought 'Star Wars' back to this swath of the Sahara, two decades after he filmed much of the original 1977 blockbuster in the region. Bestowed with a much bigger budget for 1999's 'The Phantom Menace,' Lucas had a life-size mock city built to represent Mos Espa—a busy Tatooine spaceport where much of the movie's action is set. While weathered by wind, the set still stands abandoned outside the remote town of Tozeur, and fans are welcome to visit.

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