Marcia Lucas, the Oscar-winning editor of the original Star Wars film, has died aged 80.

Lucas, who was married to Star Wars creator George Lucas during the making of the first three films, was regarded as a pivotal creative force behind the space saga's early success, imbuing the original series with emotional depth and narrative clarity.

She died from metastatic cancer at her home in Rancho Mirage, California, on Wednesday surrounded by loved ones, according to her family.

"Marcia was a force," her family said in a statement to US media on Friday. "A true trailblazer for women in film and one of the most influential editors in cinematic history; she helped redefine what film editing could be."

Lucas won the Academy Award for Best Film Editing for 1977's Star Wars - later renamed A New Hope - alongside editors Richard Chew and Paul Hirsch.

Although her contributions largely took place behind the scenes, her role in shaping the film's emotional heart and narrative structure has been widely recognised in the decades since its release.

George Lucas credited her with helping make sense of the vast amount of footage filmed for the climactic Death Star battle sequence.

"It was extremely complex and we had 40,000 feet of dialogue footage of pilots saying this and that," he told Rolling Stone shortly after the film's release.

"Nobody really has ever tried to interweave an actual plot story into a dogfight, and we were trying to do that."

Born Marcia Griffin in Modesto, California, in 1945, she began her career as a film librarian before becoming one of Hollywood's most respected editors.

After marrying George Lucas in 1969, she worked on several of his early films, including THX 1138 and American Graffiti - earning an Oscar nomination for the latter.

She also collaborated with director Martin Scorsese on a string of his acclaimed 1970s films including Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, Taxi Driver and New York, New York.

Lucas later returned to the Star Wars franchise, working on The Empire Strikes Back in 1980 and Return of the Jedi in 1983.

She and George Lucas adopted a daughter, Amanda, in 1981. The couple divorced in 1983 after 14 years of marriage.

She later married Tom Rodrigues, a production manager at Skywalker Ranch, with whom she had a second daughter, Amy.

Her family said in its statement: "Her influence on film is indelible, but those who knew her best will remember the way she made life feel more vivid, more beautiful, more fun and more full of love.

"Her work was known for its emotional intelligence, rhythm and humanity - a rare ability to find the truth of a scene and bring heart, momentum and clarity to the screen."

"I love film editing," Lucas once told a reporter, according to Lucasfilm.

"I have an innate ability to take good material and make it better, and to take bad material and make it fair."

Paying tribute on Saturday, Lucasfilm said it was "deeply saddened" to learn of her death, adding it "joins the global filmmaking community in mourning the loss of Marcia Lucas".

Meanwhile, Mark Hamill, who portrayed Star Wars protagonist Luke Skywalker, wrote that he and his wife Marilou were "deeply saddened by the loss of our lifelong friend".

He added: "Not just a gifted, innovative artist, she also happened to be a genuinely nice person. Smart, funny and just plain fun to be around. Thankfully, her memory lives on and we will never stop missing her."