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...a double-LP release?
Yes, JW was a big name, having won an Oscar and enjoyed popular radioplay for the main title* of same.
But THE STAR WARS was a punky science fiction** film. It was expected to be eclipsed by Fox's fatuous, money-spinning film of a fatuous, money-spinning novel***, "The Other Side of Midnight."
Also, the "drooling teenboy" market did not exist as a marketing tool, until THE STAR WARS unleashed it. And while there had been 2-disc soundtrack releases, they were not many.
Since these things have to be planned, I'm guessing that it was mapped out as a 2-LP release well in advance of its jaw-dropping b.o. success.
Has anyone read/heard anywhere why Lucas and/or Fox went the whole magilla with this one?
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*If you can believe it, a freaking dramatic sequence of a film, no lyrics, played on popular radio!
**In 1977, this term would bring eyerolls of derision.
***To borrow a phrase from someone more clever than I.
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THE STAR WAR world conquest was years in the planning. It was begun by a secret group of hashinen thugees (thus the use of the name "Kenobi," part of the plot to mentally drug/brainwash the yout' of the world) and other mind-control government outfits. (Probably the Illuminati too.) What, you thought this was merely a whim of George Lucas? That American Graffiti guy?
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Has anyone read/heard anywhere why Lucas and/or Fox went the whole magilla with this one?
I've never read or heard of such, so Zardoz shouldn't Speak … but I shall. 
Even prior to the 1970s, some 'planned' LP programs never materialized. I believe North's Spartacus was planned to be a double-LP but what emerged was a gatefold single LP.
I expect that the music industry, the studios, artists' agencies, record producers, etc. all 'pushed' to have their music programs presented in as comprehensive as possible editions … only to subsequently have budgets, marketing analysis, accounting departments, etc. scale down (or cancel altogether) the intended material.
Regarding the 1977 Star Wars double-LP on 20th Century Fox records, perhaps the constellation of factors were all in alignment and the 2 discs 'happened' because no one objected to its issuance or reduced the content to 'fit' onto one LP.
Two such factors, in my opinion, were Dolby Stereo and the 'organized' orchestra.
1964 is sometimes considered as the 'end' of Golden Age Hollywood studio film scoring and by 1977 the timing felt ripe to revisit the symphonic sound in Dolby Stereo.
Remember that only 10 years previous, the record-buying public still contended with mono sound elements being electronically channeled to simulate stereo.
The London Symphony Orchestra may have been the bigger 'draw' here than the name of John Williams.
Recall, also, that numerous composers were disenchanted with Los Angeles engineers who, during the mid-1970s, recorded film music in 3 monaural channels instead of a true stereo spread.
Compound this with expensive musician unions' re-use fees and lower costs recording abroad.
All these factors led to a late-'70s trend of reconfiguring film music into music for album purposes and to be re-recorded in England.
Science-Fiction may not have been much of a factor to green-light a 2-LP production, but Star Wars was a spearhead in associating symphonic music with science-fiction.
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I've often wondered this myself. It's well-known Fox assumed that Star Wars was going to tank. Why they thought that issuing a soundtrack -- let alone a more costly double LP set -- was a good commercial move has always mystified me.
If I may add my own speculation -- the original Star Wars LP credits George Lucas as album producer. Well, it was Williams who actually put the album together, and Lionel Newman was the actual session producer. I wonder if it was George Lucas who put up some (or all) of the money to finance the album, and the "Produced by" credit was a way of acknowledging that.
The bigger question is why Star Wars got a 2-record set (when it was expected to bomb) but Return of the Jedi -- a guaranteed hit -- only got one disc. 
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Zardoz’s and Paul’s thoughts seem pretty perceptive to me and would be a rationale for the double album that a lot of us literally had as our guide to film music, the galaxy far, far away, and the symphony orchestra. It’s still a great listen and weaves a self-contained story arc much like the film successfully did. I wonder how much Lucasfilm publicist, Charles Lippincott, influenced this too. It certainly seems like he was assiduous at finding an audience to generate buzz about the film.
Chris
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