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[Confirmed][Archive]

# Leaked Death Star images revealed LEGO’s thousand-dollar bet

LEGO announced the $999.99, 9,023-piece set; the first exact July leak day remains unverified.

Published 09 Nov 2026, 02:21 UTC

Leaked on July 2025 (exact day unverified)

![Original Leakly terminal-style archive card: Leaked Death Star images revealed LEGO’s thousand-dollar bet](https://leakly.com/assets/og/lego-death-star-images.png)

Long before LEGO formally showed its new Death Star, the price and shape were already provoking arguments. The Verge’s September 2025 announcement coverage says images and pricing had leaked in July. IGN’s August coverage documented a giant, thousand-dollar set whose cross-section design differed from the full sphere some collectors expected.

The exact first day of that July leak has not been established from the sources retained for this retrospective. We show the month rather than manufacture a precise date. Rumors about individual minifigures and later images should not be treated as interchangeable evidence for when the complete set first appeared.

The early discussion was unusually revealing about what buyers thought a premium collectible should be. Some objected to paying that much for a slice of the battle station; others valued the visible rooms and scenes. Those reactions were opinions about a reported design, not proof of the final piece count or included characters.

LEGO’s public announcement supplied the outcome: the Ultimate Collector Series Death Star was a real product, with 9,023 pieces and a US price of $999.99. The official details and The Verge’s launch coverage confirmed the central price-and-format story. They also superseded tentative counts and lists circulating before the reveal.

The confirmed badge covers that core claim, while the unresolved first-day provenance remains an editorial limitation. This is the wildcard entry in the archive, not a breach or stolen-data story. It shows how an advance product disclosure can force a pricing debate before a company has made its case. We do not reproduce the leaked pictures, and no relevant X post was verified for this retrospective. The archive links reporting and the official announcement, with an original graphic in place of copyrighted product photography.

[Confirmed]

## What happened later

LEGO announced the $999.99, 9,023-piece set; the first exact July leak day remains unverified.

## Source note

The exact day of the first leak is unknown. We date it to July 2025, the month identified in later coverage, rather than invent a day.

## Sources & captured post

## Outlet-sourced retrospective

No suitable X post was verified for this entry. No post or engagement figures have been invented.

### Original source & corroborating coverage

* [IGN — LEGO's Rumored $1,000 Star Wars Death Star Spotted in Leaked Images, With One of the Largest Piece Counts of All Time](https://me.ign.com/en/lego-toys/234502/news/legos-rumored-1000-star-wars-death-star-spotted-in-leaked-images-with-one-of-the-largest-piece-count)
* [The Verge — Here is Lego’s $1,000 Death Star, the most expensive Lego set ever](https://www.theverge.com/news/770770/lego-ucs-death-star-price-release-date)
* [LEGO — LEGO® Star Wars™ Unveils the Ultimate Death Star™ Set - About Us - LEGO.com](https://www.lego.com/en-us/aboutus/news/2025/september/lego-star-wars-unveils-the-ultimate-death-star-set)

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