Ever since George Lucas sold Lucasfilm to Disney for $US4 billion ($5 billion), the Star Wars creator has been on the outside looking in. However, it seems that when he gets the chance, he still likes to make a suggestion or two.
George Lucas still loves talking about the Jedi, seen here in The Phantom Menace. Image: Fox
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy said that Lucas doesn’t really give advice on the franchise any more, except when it comes to the Jedi.
“Not really,” Kennedy said when ask if Lucas contributes any more. “But he’ll whisper in my ear every now and then. Usually it’s something specific or important to him about Jedi training. Things like that.”
“I think he’s starting to settle into this and just be a fan,” she continues. “It’s taken a while. It’s hard to let go, after 40 years. That’s a lot of expectation and things he thought a lot about. Suddenly that next generation, that whole thematic idea he came up with, is in process.”
Kennedy didn’t say — nor will she ever, probably — if any of those suggestions were put into effect by anyone still producing Star Wars stories. But you have to think she at least gives them more healthy consideration than the run-of-the-mill pitch or idea.
I love that Jedi mythology is where Lucas’ imagination still runs wild. It’s one of the aspects of the new trilogy that hasn’t quite been explored yet and has so much potential. With Rey and Luke as the centre of the story, there’s just so much more we can learn about the Jedi, the Force, and all that good stuff that makes Star Wars, Star Wars. Plus, it was obviously at the heart of what Lucas tried to explain in the prequels.
Maybe we’ll see some of Lucas’ ideas in action when Star Wars: The Last Jedi opens December 14.