George Lucas is the man behind what most of us know and love in the Star Wars universe. But what some people might be surprised to hear is that the direction that the newer movies were going in weren’t necessarily the way that Lucas had originally envisioned it; they were all quite the opposite of how he had wanted to see the franchise go.
George Lucas, since selling Lucasfilm to Disney back in 2012, hasn’t been the happiest man in the galaxy with the direction of certain films, as he had seen them producing differently. What does Lucas not like about the direction of the franchise? Why even sell Lucasfilm in the first place?
What does George Lucas not like about where the direction of the Star Wars universe is headed?
Originally when Lucas had taken on the Star Wars job, he had planned on making three trilogies. However, other pipe dreams and taking care of his family came first (and we totally understand him on that one) and he decided to sell Lucasfilm to Disney as the brand new owners. All of his future ideas had been essentially handed over to Disney and at that point, all he could do was hope, dream, and wish for them to be used in the way that he had intended them to be used. Well, according to Lucas himself, that didn’t really happen and he’s pretty miffed about it.
While he hasn’t directly said anything about how much he hated the current and recent past directions of his original ideas/franchises, he’s made some comments elduing to such ideas in a few different interviews on a few different occasions. Here’s what he had to say in a Q&A:
"“I kind of lost control of Star Wars, so it’s going off in a different path than what I intended but the first six [Star Wars films] are very much mine and my philosophy.”"
Before he sold Lucasfilm, he actually debated not doing it and keeping it for himself. At that time he was already 69 years old, had a newborn daughter and would’ve been nearly 80 years old by the time that particular final trilogy had wrapped itself up. He had ultimately decided that even if he took on that last part of his vision, that he just simply wouldn’t be able to rest and he decided that ultimately his health, family, and everyone around him’s well-being was way more important.
During certain films, such as The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Lucas wasn’t directing those movies himself, but he made sure to be on set each and every day in order to ensure that his proper vision was being carried out.
Overall, we’re super happy with George Lucas and where he’s been able to take the Star Wars universe as a whole. What are your personal thoughts on how he’s done/did? Let’s chat!
That’s a wrap on why George Lucas hates the recent past and current direction of Star Wars!