Actor Liam Neeson has shared a statement about how he feels about the prequels.
For all the disappointment fans expressed over the Star War prequel trilogy films when they were first released, the George Lucas-helmed story of Anakin Skywalker’s rise and fall to the Dark Side has enjoyed a resurgence of fan support in recent years. This could be due to the sharply divided opinions about the sequel trilogy, but, more likely, it’s a sign of the fandom’s renewed appreciation for the series’ creator.
As The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson recently tweeted, “Lucas made a gorgeous 7-hour long movie for children about how entitlement and fear of loss turns good people into fascists, and did it while spearheading nearly every technical sea change in modern filmmaking of the past 30 years.”
Liam Neeson on The Phantom Menace
In a recent conversation with Andy Cohen on his SiriusXM radio program Radio Andy, Liam Neeson, who played the powerful and somewhat rebellious Jedi Knight Qui-Gon Jinn in The Phantom Menace, expressed his appreciation for being a part of the prequel trilogy.
Speaking about The Phantom Menace, Neeson said, “I like the film. I’m proud of it and proud to have been a part of it.” He went on to explain how grateful he was for the unique experience of being in a Star Wars film. “I got to be a Jedi. I got to play with those wonderful lightsabers and stuff. It was terrific[.]”
Qui-Gon Jinn has been a fan favorite from the prequel trilogy for years, and it’s largely due to Neeson’s knockout performance of the character. Qui-Gon continues to make appearances in Star Wars books and comics, most recently in Claudia Gray’s novel Master and Apprentice. With a new post-Revenge of the Sith Obi-Wan Kenobi series currently in development for Disney+, fans are eagerly anticipating Neeson returning to voice the character in the show, though there’s been no word about it so far.
Ewan McGregor chimes in with a surprise
Ewan McGregor, who played Obi-Wan Kenobi in the prequel trilogy, also recently spoke about the films to Empire Online, even expressing surprise over some fans enjoying the prequels more than the original trilogy. McGregor said, “All these years later, I’m really aware of what our films meant to the generation they were made for, the children of that time. They really like them. I’ve met people who – they mean a lot to them, those films, more so than the original three, and I’m like, ‘Are you kidding?'”
It’s interesting to see how much the prequel films have risen in favor among fans, and it’s refreshing to hear those involved in the films reflecting with fondness on the experience of being a part of Star Wars history. Perhaps we’ll hear from more actors from the prequel era in the future.