The creators of Blackstar (1981) originally wanted the titular character to be a black man. Unsure of the appeal of a black superhero, CBS executives ordered the production team to make Blackstar a Caucasian man with a dark tan instead.
Originally, there were only going to be three Trobbits, all blue-skinned and based on the Morlocks from "The Time Machine." But CBS found the characters too monstrous and asked them to be redesigned, and their number increased to seven, not unlike "Disney's" Seven Dwarfs.
The first script included suggestions on how the voices of the main characters should sound. Blackstar was described as sounding like James Garner or Han Solo, Mara to be like Greta Garbo or Carole Lombard, Balkar to sound like Orson Welles, Carpo like Wally Cox, Gossamear to mimic Mickey Mouse, Rif like Walter Brennan, Burble to sound like the Disney character Goofy, and Overlord's voice to be like that of Darth Vader.
According to "Filmaton" staffer Robert Lamb, "Blackstar" was commissioned by CBS because of "Thundarr the Barbarian's" success on ABC.