Disney Acquires Star Wars

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
Nomad said:
George Lucas short interview:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyqlTi7lkhY
Thanks a lot. Here's the nuts and bolts:

Lucas: "I've been talking about retiring for several years now ... I'm not in the film business anymore, and I don't [have to] run a corporation."

Lucas: "I wanted to put the company somewhere in a larger entity who could protect it."

Lucas: "The great thing about Disney is ... between the parks and all the things they've got going, it's great that we have a chance to expand that."

Lucas: "I have story treatments of 7, 8 and 9 and a bunch of other movies. And obviously there are hundreds of books and comics (said in a hilariously dismissive way)."

Kennedy: "The main thing is to protect these characters. To make sure that they still continue to let them live in the way that you created them, and that the universe of Star Wars continues to grow."

I've quoted the parts I thought were revealing. Don't particularly like they idea of them employing the original cast, which is what it sounds like Kennedy was implying in that last quote. I also don't like that Lucas has treatments for the next trilogy, but maybe those will serve only as a thin outline (I want to believe...).
 

nomad

"Bring the light of day"
Walter said:
I've quoted the parts I thought were revealing. Don't particularly like they idea of them employing the original cast, which is what it sounds like Kennedy was implying in that last quote. I also don't like that Lucas has treatments for the next trilogy, but maybe those will serve only as a thin outline (I want to believe...).
I personally have no "beef" with his horrible writing for the soul purpose that he also did the same for both Empire and Return. As long as he does not have full control over these films, I can have some hope that it won't repeat the same mistake film-wise. But I do have a problem with his comment "Everyone used to tell me that this is a movie that Disney should've made". It stands so far from where most of the original fans praised... That it hurt my ears when I heard that.

Also, Mark Hamill expressed at IGN that there has been talk about him in episode 7. How far is this from the real thing is still too early. But the good part is that he himself has mixed feelings about the whole thing as well. I'll leave this post with my final thought. If Disney can bring the Solo back into the vortex of Star Wars? I'm in.
 

NightCrawler

Aeons gone, vast, mad and deathless
Fuck Star Wars, seriously. Never understood the appeal of these stupid movies, even when i was a kid. Why people call them masterpieces is beyond me, there's only one good Star Wars movie. But let them make tons of them, one per year i say. Let it be such a diluted series that people get sick and tired of it.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
NightCrawler said:
there's only one good Star Wars movie.
I don't disagree, but I believe it doesn't have to stay that way. I assume you're referring to Empire, which is the movie Lucas exerted the least control over. That's a good sign for the future.
 

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
It's think it's exaggerating to say there's only one good movie. I like the 3 of them, including the first one and I don't think it's fair to bash it in retrospect like that. Jedi, I could understand (EWOKS), but even then it's not like Empire is exempt of defaults itself. They worked well enough as a trilogy. Anyways, the final word from me is that I'll have to be convinced about this new direction. I wouldn't have minded if there hadn't been any sequels (or prequels) at all, and Lucas being mostly out of the picture isn't nearly enough to reassure me.
 

Johnstantine

Skibbidy Boo Bop
Aazealh said:
It's think it's exaggerating to say there's only one good movie. I like the 3 of them, including the first one and I don't think it's fair to bash it in retrospect like that. Jedi, I could understand (EWOKS), but even then it's not like Empire is exempt of defaults itself. They worked well enough as a trilogy. Anyways, the final word from me is that I'll have to be convinced about this new direction. I wouldn't have minded if there hadn't been any sequels (or prequels) at all, and Lucas being mostly out of the picture isn't nearly enough to reassure me.

My thoughts exactly. Empire was wonderful, but it still had its faults.

BUT...like I said earlier, the Genndy Tartakovsky Clone Wars episodes were fucking phenomenal.
 

Scorpio

Courtesy of Grail's doodling.
LqaJi.jpg


Do you think he knew what he was getting himself in to?
 

Saephon

Die young and save yourself
After mulling it over I've decided I'm in the camp that thinks there's nowhere to go but up for the franchise. Maybe some fresh blood will be just what Star Wars needs. And who knows, maybe "Creative Consultant" is just a nominal title where Lucas can give input but be rejected?

I totally agree with the sentiment of feeling "burnt out" on it all though. The prequels and mediocre video games have left a bad taste in my mouth, and I'm also not really a fan of the extended universe books and drivel. I've read maybe a dozen, and it just seems like inconsistent, glorified fanfiction to me. To be honest, I don't find the universe all that interesting when compared to Star Trek, Mass Effect, or even BSG. To me Star Wars is the gateway drug to nerd-dom. It's really awesome at first, but once you get exposed to real Sci-Fi, you start to realize just how shallow and cheesy it is.

Sorry if I sound really jaded and hateful about the series :griffnotevil:. I do really like all three of the first movies just fine; I just think the beast it's turned into is extremely overrated. Here's hoping for the future though. I'll be cautiously optimistic.


Edit: I feel I ought to mention that the series has allowed for some great stories such as Knights of the Old Republic and Shadows of the Empire. If more of the universe were fleshed out by the original BioWare writers behind KOTOR, I'd feel a lot differently.
 

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
Saephon said:
I'm also not really a fan of the extended universe books and drivel. I've read maybe a dozen, and it just seems like inconsistent, glorified fanfiction to me.

Probably because that's exactly what it is. :iva:
 

Oburi

All praise Grail
http://samuel-warde.com/2012/11/george-lucas-donates-4-billion-from-disney-sale-to-education/

I suppose this is pretty cool.
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
Johnstantine said:
http://www.slashfilm.com/j-j-abrams-to-direct-star-wars-episode-vii/

Abrams is more or less confirmed to direct Episode 7. After Super 8, I told myself I'd love to see him direct a Star Wars movie at some point. Now it's happening.

I can't really argue with the choice, even his Star Trek movie felt more like Star Wars. I was kind of bothered he was among the losers that turned it down when they really had nothing better to do either ("Rehabilitate Star Wars? Nah, I'm busy not doing a bunch of crappy go-nowhere projects"). Now it seems like he even said no for all the right reasons (or it's the right spin anyway). Despite some misgivings about some of his previous work, I think he's basically the right guy when it comes down to it, even his faults are Spielbergian (Lucasonian? =). Also, he has his own name, major independent success, and it doesn't feel like they're settling for some prospect that's only done small time crap or is getting a second chance at the big leagues. Also, judging from his past work and that article, he'll take it seriously and try to do a meticulously good job. Understanding and being concerned with not committing sacrilege is a good thing, I don't want some cavalier hack "auteur" going in with the attitude, "This is MY TAKE on Star Wars, baby!" Anyway, he's already pretty much trying to be Steven Spielberg or Lucas, so here's the ultimate test. Do your best, Abrams.

Matthew Vaughn who may have pitched to have Chloë Grace Moretz in the lead role

*shudder*

Yeah, definitely can't complain about Abrams. Though, how scary is it if there's already a part for her? Are they trying to top the atrocity of the little boy protagonist with a teen girl protagonist? Is the main character Jar Jar's great granddaughter?

Johnstantine said:
If Brad Bird can get one of the latter two, then I think that the series just might make up for 1, 2, and 3.

And considering he's apparently already orchestrating the project behind the scenes at this point, how about Spielberg steps up and stops demurring? I want him to fulfill the promise of what Jedi could have been with him at the helm. No more "It's George's thing" crap. It is your DESTINY.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
The concern that I have is that Abrams will be helming the ship of this new project, and I'm not sure he's the best man for it. I just never imagined the guy that created LOST would ultimately be reviving Star Wars. That's a little disconcerting to me.
 

Johnstantine

Skibbidy Boo Bop
Walter said:
The concern that I have is that Abrams will be helming the ship of this new project, and I'm not sure he's the best man for it. I just never imagined the guy that created LOST would ultimately be reviving Star Wars. That's a little disconcerting to me.

He created Lost, but pretty much left after the first few episodes. Damon Lindelof even said he saw Abrams on the first two or three episodes, and then he disappeared to take on other projects. So, with that in mind, I'm more comforted with him being the choice director.

Griffith said:
*shudder*

Yeah, definitely can't complain about Abrams. Though, how scary is it if there's already a part for her? Are they trying to top the atrocity of the little boy protagonist with a teen girl protagonist? Is the main character Jar Jar's great granddaughter?

See, I thought that as well. I can't stand her, so I thought it would be counter-productive to include her in the cast.

If I had it my way, then I'd do the Old Republic. Or, as I like to call it, the only actual interesting portion of the SW universe.

Griffith said:
And considering he's apparently already orchestrating the project behind the scenes at this point, how about Spielberg steps up and stops demurring? I want him to fulfill the promise of what Jedi could have been with him at the helm. No more "It's George's thing" crap. It is your DESTINY.

I would love for Bird to do it, but apparently he and Lindelof are doing a Rocketeer remake (which I'm excited for, sans Lindelof, god help us). And Spielberg has really been a hit or miss with me. I don't go out of my way to watch his movies, nor do I Lucas' films. Actually, I think Abrams is the perfect combo of both, while bringing his own sense of style.
 

nomad

"Bring the light of day"
Seems to me like they have some promising tools to make this a decent movie. I've given up on Star Wars the moment I saw episode 1, and frankly I'm ok with it. I can almost say that this universe has seen so much garbage that I'm used to it, and wouldn't bother me if these films turn out to be flops. It would be nice to be excited for Star Wars once again though.

There's been quite the talk in the internet about a female lead role in episode 7the past few weeks. I don't know why all of a sudden but I guess we'll find out soon enough. I like JJ for many reasons...Even Cloverfield being one of them. I'm sure his position will bring something good or at least refreshing to the table. Good luck.
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
Walter said:
The concern that I have is that Abrams will be helming the ship of this new project, and I'm not sure he's the best man for it. I just never imagined the guy that created LOST would ultimately be reviving Star Wars. That's a little disconcerting to me.

Not that the writer of Little Miss Sunshine is doing the script? =)

Actually, if they had gotten Bird it would basically be Pixar doing it (screenwriter also did Toy Story 3), which is a lot more palatable than Disney.

Anyway, that was precisely my misgiving (Abrams = Lost = :schierke:) when I heard the news, but, as johnstantine pointed out, it's probably more guilt by association for what Lost became than anything Abrams actually did (though I haven't really studied his work otherwise). As for the best man, it was looking pretty bleak there before this news, with every fanboy favorite and b-list schlockster turning it down (I've already seen a lot of unfocused angst over the Abrams pick, but I wonder what the big objection/alternative is besides, "I have a bad feeling about this" I mean, was this ever going to be A New Hope all over again?). Plus, I just think anyone besides Lucas' team doing Star Wars takes getting used to; even if one thinks it's for the best, actually settling on someone else is a different matter. To me, for whatever iteration of Star Wars this is supposed to be, which isn't going to be classic like the originals or an abomination like the prequels, Abrams actually brings some credibility and a steady hand to the project, and his past work has struck the appropriate tone for Star Wars. To put it simply, he's done it before (Star Trek). BTW, it's also kind of cool that one man is doing both, and really, the most important thing is Lindelof has nothing to do with it. =)
 

Saephon

Die young and save yourself
This pleases me. I've never really associated the travesty that LOST became with Abram's anyway; it takes two or three hackneyed writers to create *that* mess.

I'm a little amused/put off by people who are freaking out about one man being in charge of both Star Wars and Star Trek franchises though. What is the damn significance of that anyway, like they are two opposing forces that have always been at odds with each other? Wars vs Trek is such a fanboy-fabricated circus. Any rational (Ah, now I see the problem.. =) person is capable of enjoying both without fogging up their horn-rimmed glasses.

Besides, if we're being honest, we all know that Star Trek is the better series, and really the only of the two that qualifies as Sci-Fi. Lucas's movies are better classified as Fantasy that happens to take place in outer space with beamswords.
 
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