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Star Wars: Directors May Not Want To Work With Lucasfilm After Many Firings
There's growing belief major directors may not want to take on any upcoming Star Wars projects due to Lucasfilm frequently parting ways with creatives. As successful as Disney's Star Wars films have been both critically and commercially, they've also made a slew of headlines for constant behind-the-scenes drama. Whether it was Gareth Edwards being replaced by Tony Gilroy for Rogue One reshoots, the Phil Lord & Chris Miller fiasco on Solo, or Colin Trevorrow being fired from Star Wars 9, it seems like there's always something going on at Lucasfilm.
Unfortunately, the troubling trend continued earlier in the week when it was announced David Benioff & D.B. Weiss' planned Star Wars movie trilogy (which was announced back in February 2018) was cancelled due to creative differences. The pair was hoping to explore the origins of the Jedi, but their relationship with Lucasfilm began to splinter over the summer, and they left. Benioff and Weiss are just the latest names on an ever-growing list that also includes the likes of Josh Trank (who was removed from a Star Wars spinoff in 2015). Obviously, this is very concerning, and it could have an impact on the pool of directors Lucasfilm can choose from.
In their report on the fallout from Benioff & Weiss leaving Star Wars, Variety cites "insiders at the talent agencies" that "believe that top filmmakers may become wary of working on the series, particularly if the end result will be an embarrassing dismissal."
Right now, these comments are just speculative, but it wouldn't be surprising if there was some truth behind them. As appealing a prospect as playing in the Star Wars sandbox is to today's directors (many of whom were inspired by the original trilogy), Lucasfilm's shaky track record could give some pause before singing on. Creative differences happen all the time in Hollywood (even at Marvel's well-oiled machine), but things have gone to another level with the Star Wars departures. It'll be interesting to see what moves Lucasfilm makes moving forward and who they're able to hire for the upcoming films. Ideally, Lucasfilm will reassess their process to determine why this keeps happening, so they can bring on the right people at the jump and avoid further public embarrassment. There are no plans to have Kevin Feige take over for Kathleen Kennedy, so for now, that will fall upon her.
It is worth mentioning that Lucasfilm has cultivated positive relationships with a handful of directors. J.J. Abrams was brought back to helm The Rise of Skywalker; Rian Johnson's The Last Jedi had a smooth, drama-free production, and The Mandalorian's Deborah Chow is now calling the shots on the Obi-Wan series. Bryce Dallas Howard was surprised with the amount of creative freedom the Mandalorian directors (which also included Taika Waititi) got on their episodes, and Lucasfilm is so excited by the show, they're already working on a second season. It's possible for Star Wars to become an immersive playground for some of the industry's biggest voices, but there's a lot of work to be done.
Star Wars 9 / Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) release date: Dec 20, 2019
