Star Wars News Thread

[canofhumdingers]

I don't think Star Wars is limited at all. It's an entire GALAXY for crying out loud! While I've enjoyed what's come so far, I can understand the complaint of them revisiting so many ideas from the past. Which is really what makes it feel limited. I think Lucasfilm needs to be really bold and go for really new ideas (on the surface TLJ tried to do this, but at its core it was really more of the same). Visit all new parts of the galaxy far far away. Develop stories with all new characters completely unrelated to anyone we know. Go way back into the past or jump far into the future.

And they can also explore new genres. They could use that to explore new aspects of the more familiar.

Do a Top Gun style actioner about an X-Wing squadron.

Do a highly stylish Samurai inspired pic (leaning heavily on inspiration from films like Harakiri, Sword of Doom, and Three Outlaw Samurai) about Darth Vader hunting down remaining Jedi and maybe some Guardians of the Whills (the group Baze and Chirrut in Rogue One belonged to). But while Vader would the force that drives the narrative, the focus of the story would be on his victims as he pursues them one by one.

Gah, I have SO MANY ideas for films that could be amazing! Lucasfilm, hire me!

[The Shadow]

There's a lot of great stuff in the former Star Wars Expanded Universe (now branded Star Wars Legends). (To be fair there's some not so good stuff too) Unfortunately Disney-Lucasfilm seems almost resistant to embracing the good potential of the former SWEU; although bits and pieces have been used in projects such as SW: Rebels.

If we want to follow the adventures of an X-Wing squadron, Disney-Lucasfilm could adapt the Star Wars: X-Wing book series (although considering where Disney-Lucasfilm took the future of SW in the sequel trilogy some elements would likely need to be changed). The first 4 books follow the famous Rogue Squadron. Book 5 follows the creation of a new unit, Wraith Squadron, that ultimately becomes an official unofficial undercover unit (Wraith Squadron's adventures are more akin to the A-Team's). There's even a great bit in the Wraith squadron books where they get the idea to rotate pilots wearing an all black flight suit and attached to the front is a plush Ewok, which Wraith squadron makes sure enemies see and thus begins the rumor that the Alliance has an Ewok fighter pilot.

A samurai inspired movie would be great, it'd be nice if Disney-Lucasfilm would let someone deliver a movie like that. Just my opinion, but I think such a movie would have a better chance to succeed by moving it way back into the Old Republic time period -- something that takes place hundreds or even a thousand or more years before the time of the original trilogy.

Along the same vein, I've long thought Lucasfilm might look to classic stories in some way to create new Star Wars stories, EG books, direct to video movies, etc. A Old Republic time period story based on THE PRISONER OF ZENDA could be great fun (the 1937 film adaptation of TPoZ is fantastic).


There's definitely a lot of great different ways to take future Star Wars stories, and importantly still feel like a SW story, if only Disney-Lucasfilm would allow it to happen.

[Henry88]

Star Wars Rumor: Kathleen Kennedy Stepping Down From Lucasfilm?
https://screenrant.com/star-wars-kathle ... film-exit/

[jellydonut25]

[O.Supreme]

Just to conclude on the "Bullying" issue. As a SW fan, yes some of the plot decisions in recent films, or character portrayals I have not been a fan of. Still, I understand everyone involved from the actors, to the producers, everyone involved, are all still humans with feelings, and I'd never personally attack any one of them. I think KK stepping down is a great idea. On a personal level, she may be a wonderful human being. Her track record is proven, its just whatever vision she had for Star Wars, doesn't appear to be what most fans wanted. I've experienced it before. With Star Trek, Transformers, Godzilla, comic book superheroes...pretty much anything I'm really a fan of. Sometimes it is exactly what I think it should be, and sometimes it isn't. I'll admit the geek in me has taken it personal at times, and for that I try to step back and see the big picture. I guess its just that for the longest time SW was a special event. Unlike most other things I'm into in which portrayals in media are far more frequent. We got 3 great films (say what you will, I'm of the few that actually like RotJ the Best). Everything else, from the TV Films, to Prequels, to Animated Series, to all the EU was "unnecessary" but most of it was pretty good. Even despite my feelings of Disney negating the EU, TFA was a solid entry, and I really liked Rogue One, to me it was the perfect representation of an EU novel realized in film. But TLK was not what I wanted at all, and apparently I am not alone. Still I'd never bully or attack anyone involved in the film, after all, it is just a film, and people, are people (sorry if that sounds oversimplified). I'm sure KK will find another place in Hollywood in short order, and I do wish her continued success in whatever she does (if this stepping down does occur that is). But hopefully SW will recapture whatever it is that made us as fans feel that it was so special. I think a good start would be eliminating all planned films form Disney's current schedule aside from episode IX, let a few years go by until a more solid strategy can be developed. There's already another animated series coming out this fall, and a live action TV series in development. Lets see how those fare before we commit to "a film a year" for the indefinite future, especially in light of Solo's infamy of being possibly the first SW film to lose money at the Box Office.

[eabaker]

[mr.negativity]

Toxic Fandom Is Killing 'Star Wars'

[lhb412]

[mr.negativity]

[klen7]

^ Whoa whoa whoa! John Lasseter got fired from Pixar for hugging people?!

I had a coworker that did this as well as unwelcome shoulder rubs (he was on the spectrum and was just being friendly) I realllly don't care for workplace hugs or shoulder rubs but found I could redirect him with fist bumps, which became our thing and I avoided anymore shoulder rubs and hugs after that. Eventually someone complained and he was put on notice that if it happened again he would be fired. After that he went from always being happy to being very quiet and introverted, even his fist bumps were very half hearted. Anyway, I think the point of that story was that he wasn't doing for exploitative or domineering reasons, it was just how he expressed himself. A little communication could have avoided the situation.

[lhb412]

^ Lasseter's hugs were... well, they crossed the line into inappropriate. His behavior was such an open secret for people in the industry that women at the studio developed an evasive maneuver to dodge him when he lunged towards them. The maneuver was called, of course, "The Lasseter." It was also contrived to keep Lasseter away from, or at least chaperoned while with the attractive (and very young) starlets. When the Tinkerbell product line was a big deal Lasseter took the actresses who voiced Tinkerbell and her friends out drinking and he was reportedly "inappropriate with the fairies" (now there's a quote that'll haunt me).

[klen7]

^ Guess i should have read more than the Disney statement on this. After reading more i got linked to the John Kricfalusi (Ren and Stimpy) "apology" fiasco - what a mess.

[daikaijusaurus]

[eabaker]

Except every recent Star Wars movie has been embraced by a significant portion of the fandom and - far more importantly - the general public.

Solo didn't exactly light the box office on fire, but it's being mostly embraced by the fans who had the biggest problems with TLJ.

Literally none of the recent Star Wars movies can be called "garbage" without veering into severe hyperbole.

[lhb412]

[Benjamin Haines]

[lhb412]

[jellydonut25]

[O.Supreme]

^ I don't think that sentiment necessarily is meant to reflect specifically that only a "fan" is someone who cares. Yes non fans of something can make great films. I think what was meant was that Kathleen Kennedy obviously was ONLY in it for the money, and didn't care what direction the SW films went in. Kevin Feige (to my knowledge) was not specifically a Marvel geek/fan, but he cares very much about the quality of the film product, and while fan satisfaction may not be 100% top priority, I'm sure he knows that will come mostly automatically from top quality product.

Fans can argue about the varying range of MCU films, but there hasn't been a true critical/financial dud yet. Nothing lasts forever though, when it does happen, If the current powers that be are still around, you can bet they will use it as a template to immediately course correct and NOT do that in the future films, (even if it perhaps means refilming the next film extensively if it has a similar vibe) instead of saying - fans be damned, were going to double-down and keep doing the same thing, and cause the MCU's first financial loss.

[eabaker]

Marvel's output may have been relatively consistent in its quality (although I honestly find the second Iron Man and Thor movies almost offensively bad), but they also haven't produced anything that has stirred up nearly as much discussion, debate, analysis, reflection or passion as TLJ. I think one thing that gets missed in the discussions of that movie is that, for as much as some people didn't like it, some people genuinely love it, in the same way that they love the OT.

I think it's worth alienating some portion of your audience in order to create works that inspire that strong a favorable response from another portion. The best Marvel movies may be really, really liked by almost everybody, but making movies that everybody really likes usually means making movies that pretty few people will truly love.

[mr.negativity]

[O.Supreme]

[Henry88]

Billy Dee Williams' Son Speaks Out on Star Wars 9 Lando Rumors
https://movieweb.com/star-wars-9-lando- ... -williams/

hopefully

[eabaker]

[Benjamin Haines]