Looks like The Hollywood Reporter is finally reporting what we’ve all been noticing for years, Disney is struggling with the future of Star Wars on the big screen. Disney is a studio known to be very risk-averse, and now they’ve found themselves in a very risky situation with the franchise, as they’ve finally learned that Star Wars fans are among the most fickle and extreme fans around, and trashing them anytime they didn’t like something, wasn’t a good strategy.
According to Disney’s own internal research, Star Wars “is not a brand or a franchise, but something akin to a religion.” And when it came to creating the sequel trilogy, one source compared it to the difficulty of writing a new Bible, saying it’s like trying to “create the new New Testament. And no one can agree on anything and there’s a lot of second guessing about meanings.”
See Also Yes. Star Wars is Still Dead.
Disney’s Star Wars films have been plagued by a disappointing reliance on nostalgia rather than embracing creative risks, as evidenced by the lukewarm reception of both Episode VIII – The Last Jedi and Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker. Director J.J. Abrams openly admits that nostalgia was the primary driver behind The Force Awakens, while Rise of Skywalker merely sought to provide closure for fans. This approach has left many fans and critics alike questioning the future of the beloved franchise.
While it is understandable that Disney wanted to pay homage to the original trilogy, their decision to prioritize nostalgia over innovation led to a series of uninspired and predictable storylines. Instead of exploring fresh and exciting new ideas, the films seem content to recycle old tropes and themes, ultimately failing to engage audiences in the same way as their predecessors. The one bright side was their first foray into long form television series. After so many failures by Kathleen Kennedy, many Star Wars fans were reassured when Jon Favreau helmed The Mandalorian on Disney+. But all that goodwill was lost when Disney unceremoniously fired Gina Carano, the show’s only “strong female character,” when she posted pro-conservative tweets on her social media.
Related Star Wars is Dead to Me – And Everyone Else Too
The beloved Star Wars movies have followed the same cast of characters (and their extended entourage) since 1977. And it appears that the future of Star Wars films will continue to feature the Skywalker family in another trilogy. Simon Kinberg is reportedly directing a brand-new trilogy, but it looks like, although not been officially announced, the Daisy Ridley starring and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy directed Star Wars movie has been pulled from the 2026 Disney schedule and replaced by Ice Age 6.
The Star Wars franchise has become trapped in a cycle of nostalgia-driven filmmaking, on the one hand, some say they’ve been sacrificing originality for the sake of appeasing fans who crave familiarity. But with disastrously bad shows like The Acolyte, Disney has proven they have no original ideas that appeal to the wider Star Wars fandom. As Disney continues to milk the Star Wars cash cow, will they ever be able to break free from the shackles of nostalgia and embrace a bold, imaginative spirit that made the original trilogy so beloved, and still keep it entertaining to Star Wars fans?
Doubtful.
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English (US) · 