The Jedi Council: What Direction Would You Like To See In The Next Set Of Star Wars Films

With the new cast photo of Star Wars: Rogue One showing a much darker and grittier look than we are used to, our Jedi Council discusses what we would like to see in the direction, scope and look of the newest set of Star Wars films to come.

Elaine Tveit: The beauty of creating standalone Star Wars movies is the same which can be found in extending Star Wars to areas such as literature and comic books: An opportunity arises to explore new genres and themes that may be big departures from the classic films or even the prequels, but are still at home in that universe. Rogue One is a perfect example of the pursuit of this opportunity; it’s breaking fresh ground in the Star Wars canon universe by projecting a dark, gritty aesthetic suited to films about war.

But there’s one genre that I would like to see that I feel is one step further beyond war, one that would bring yet more depth and lore to the mystical element of the galaxy far, far away. To put it succinctly, I would like to see a Star Wars standalone movie that explores the realm of fantasy.

There’s no denying that perhaps the biggest force in Star Wars, the thing that makes it most appealing to many an audience, is the Force itself and those who are able to use it. Obi Wan defined it in a surprisingly satisfying way with his famous quote in  A New Hope: “It’s an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us, it penetrates us, it binds the galaxy together.” But there is still much to be discovered. The Legends delved into the Force and Force users, with books like the Darth Bane trilogy, Darth Plagueis, and any number of post- Return of the Jedi novels. But those, as we all know, are Legends. And while The Clone Wars television series, which is entirely canon, did delve into the inner workings of the Force somewhat and featured countless Jedi, I believe there is still more to see and learn.

I would like to see a movie that truly explores the inner workings of the Jedi and the Sith, as well as the depth and breadth of the mystery of the Force and how it influences the universe. Something like the Mortis arc in The Clone Wars, or the founding of the Rule of Two of the Sith as told of in the Darth Bane trilogy. I would like to see an epic fantasy story played before my eyes on the big screen, in one of my favorite fictional universes of all time. Because Star Wars has the unique capacity to be anything, from a space opera to a war movie, to science fiction to fantasy. And with so many mediums at hand, there is no reason for it to be held back.

Kyle Warnke: I’ve said it before, but I think it bears repeating: The almost-certainly-happening Boba Fett spinoff would work best as an homage to the Western film.

Not only was the character himself inspired by Clint Eastwood’s Man with No Name in Sergio Leone’s classic Dollars trilogy of Westerns, but there are so many elements of Star Wars that would slot in perfectly within the framework of the genre. The loner antihero bounty hunter, the seedy desert landscapes of Tatooine, the untrustworthy supporting characters. You’ve even got Firefly to act as a template for how to do science fiction in the Old West (luckily this Star Wars project would be a movie, not a TV show, or else it might not last long either.) 

Abrams has been hinting that The Force Awakens will push Star Wars into a murky moral realm that it’s never really encountered before, and we’ve already seen a glimpse of that grayness with the Rogue One cast photo. While I hope Lucasfilm and Disney are careful not to let the darkness get in the way of the fun, I think a hardboiled Western film would be the perfect continuation of that moral theme. 

My only concern is that the filmmakers don’t follow in the footsteps of previous entries in the genre and neglect the female roles. Hopefully with Kathleen Kennedy steering the ship, a Star Wars Western avoids that problem and crafts a Western from a long time ago that’s fit for a 21st-century audience.

David Harris: While my colleagues both present excellent arguments for what they would like to see in a new-look Star Wars film, I think Elaine’s thoughts on the matter, best represents my sentiments rather closely. For years now, my only hope and wish for a Star Wars film — or even a new trilogy of Star Wars films — has been for it to be centered in the Old Republic era.

My first introduction to The Old Republic was like many other, through EA/Bioware’s Knights of the Old Republic video games. This was an era in the Star Wars timeline that saw hundreds of thousands of both Sith and Jedi, roam the galaxy in an ever-evolving battle for the extermination of either order. We are first introduced to the Sith Empire when a powerful Jedi named Revan and his friend Malak, travel into deep past known space, where they came across the Sith Emperor and his empire. Revan and Malak are both converted to the Dark Side, and they return to the Republic not as heroes and friends, but as conquerors.

Revan’s story is now considered Star Wars Legends (formerly Expanded Universe), but the possibilities for a film franchise built in that era, are quite literally as infinite as the Emperor Vitiate’s Empire. You want to see what an entire army of Sith and Jedi looks like? The Old Republic is your answer.  You want the origins of the Jedi and Sith and how they founded the religion of the Force, and why they hate each other so much? The Old Republic is your answer. You want to see planets like Corellia, Coruscant, Korriban and Dromund Kaas in their infancy, and what they’re part was in the Great Galactic War? The Old Republic is your answer.  This era and its plethora of stories needs to be made canon by Lucasfilm/Disney because the deepest recesses of space really are the limit with The Old Republic.

Next: Empire Magazine to Feature Two Star Wars: The Force Awakens Covers