Which was the first licensed Lego theme?

LEGO Star Wars was the first licensed LEGO theme.

The LEGO Group introduced LEGO Star Wars in 1999 through a licensing agreement with Lucasfilm. The partnership allowed LEGO to make construction sets based on characters, vehicles, and locations from the Star Wars universe, including designs connected with the original trilogy and Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace.

The decision marked a major change for LEGO. Before then, the company’s themes were largely original worlds such as Town, Castle, Space, and Pirates. Star Wars showed that LEGO building could work with an established entertainment franchise while still preserving the system’s emphasis on building and customization.

The first sets arrived during the period surrounding The Phantom Menace, but the theme also included original-trilogy subjects such as X-wings, Snowspeeders, and the Millennium Falcon. Later licensed themes included Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, Marvel, and many others. That expansion is why Star Wars is often remembered as the beginning of LEGO’s modern licensed-theme era.