Future of Star Wars: Situation Review

Recently it was being reported that Disney and Lucasfilm had put future Star Wars anthology projects on hold. Whilst Lucasfilm has denied the reports the fan backlash to the new Star Wars films has been considerably strong that this idea wouldn't be so far-fetched. 

After Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017, Rian Johnson) became a highly divisive film among the fans and then Solo: A Star Wars Story opening at only £83 million worldwide (£50 million less than projected) it wouldn't be a surprise if Disney were concerned with the franchise was being run. 

Behind The Scenes

The Last Jedi/Fan Backlash

This is probably where the fan backlash came from. After The Force Awakens (2015, J.J Abrams) was released it left fans with many questions about where the story would head next, which resulted in a hoard of fan theories as to who Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis) is or who Rey's (Daisy Ridley) parents are. And when the film finally came out the answers that were given didn't hit fan expectations. And many were concerned with the way that Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) portrayed in the film. With some fans even considering it a betrayal to the character. Personally, I really liked The Last Jedi but I can definitely see that it had issues in its storytelling choices. And, as a result, fans decided to stick it to Lucasfilm and Kathleen Kennedy by boycotting Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018, Ron Howard) which made it a financial disaster with the future of Star Wars now being called into question. So now the top priority for Disney and Lucasfilm is to reconnect with the fans that have felt excluded by these new films.

Kathleen Kennedy

The woman who has been in charge of the new wave of Star Wars. Many fans have called Kennedy's leadership into question. Kennedy has run something of a tight ship, with her exerting a lot of control over these films.  commissioning heavy reshoots, hiring creative teams and then firing them or having them leave. She has definitely been very controlling over the franchise, and not always for the better. Under her leadership the Star Wars franchise has been very divided over these new films. So Disney might be considering bringing someone else in to fix the mess that Kennedy has caused. Disney is about making money and if one of their brands is failing to do that then they'll come in and do something about it.

Future Star Wars Projects

Star Wars: Episode IX

It makes sense that J.J Abrams (Star Trek, Super 8) would be directing the third instalment of the new trilogy as he directed the more successful of the two films that have already come out, both in terms of Box Office and fan reception. As that film did in fact appeal to a variety of audiences, in a way that The Last Jedi couldn't. However, looking back at The Force Awakens, it more or less was a rip-off of Star Wars: A New Hope (1977, George Lucas) and so many fans are concerned about whether or not this third instalment will be a repeat of Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi (1983, Richard Marquand). But, luckily Abrams has co-writer Chris Terrio (Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice, Argo) helping him write the script who will shape the script into being more of its own thing than just a repeat of the original trilogy. I've also written some ideas down for Episode IX which you can read here.

Boba Fett Solo Movie

This film was confirmed just before Solo, in order to get fans excited about future instalments down the pipeline. Even announcing that James Mangold (3:10 To Yuma, Logan) would be directing. Which would make sense as Mangold is at is best when he's working in the Western Genre. And Boba Fett's character was inspired by Spaghetti western-styled cowboys. However, after Solo: A Star Wars Story seriously underperformed at the box office is it really a good idea to have a film about a legacy character that no one really asked for? Disney might not be willing to take that risk. So I wouldn't hold out hope that this film will make it very far before being cancelled.

Kenobi: A Star Wars Story

Arguably the one anthology movie that fans really want. In fact, I really hope that this film is a high priority to Lucasfilm as it would gain them back a lot of their fanbase which has felt excluded. many fans, including myself, want to see Ewan McGregor (Star Wars: Revenge Of The Sith, Fargo) reprise his role as the Jedi Master and there is a lot of creative potential in exploring what Obi-Wan did on Tatooine between Episodes 3 and 4. The film has Stephen Daldry (The Reader, Billy Elliott) attached to direct, which is kind of an odd choice for this film, given his body of work that doesn't seem to line up with what fans would expect from an Obi-Wan movie. I'd suggest Lucasfilm get a new director. In fact, take James Mangold off of the Boba Fett film and put him on this! That is a far better match-up!

Conclusion

The future of Star Wars is kind of in flux. Episode IX has a risk of being a repeat of Return Of The Jedi but I'm hoping Chris Terrio can change that, The Boba Fett film could be interesting but I strongly believe that Disney will reconsider making it after Sol0: A Star Wars Story. However, James Mangold would be a great fit for Kenobi: A Star Wars Story since the director already tied to that project is a really odd choice.

So those are my thoughts on the current state of the Star Wars and the future projects the franchise has lined up. What do you think of the situation? What future Star Wars film do you want to see in future? Leave a comment down below and we'll discuss! And, if you liked this post then you can follow this blog for more content. Thank you for reading. :)