Disney CEO Teases “Another Decade And A Half” Of ‘Star Wars’ Films
The minute Disney purchased Lucasfilm back in 2012, we knew the studio planned to expand theStar Warsfranchise far beyond what we’d already seen. To their credit, they moved quickly: it’s now five years later, and they’re already in production on their thirdStar Warsmovie. Now you can go ahead and mark your calendars for 2032, because Disney CEOBob Igersays there’s a good chance they’ll still be pumping outStar Warsfilms at that point.
Duringa talk today at USC’s Marshall School of Business, Iger gave an update about the future of theStar Warsfranchise.
“We’re just starting to talk about what happens toStar Warsafter [Episode] 9. It’s way too early, and certainly nothing that I can reveal, but we’ve got a creative team actually thinking about what could be another decade and a half of Star Wars stories. It’s kind of mind-blowing to spend an afternoon with a creative team talking about that. Where could you go, whereshouldwe go?”
It’s interesting that Iger specifically used the phrase “Star Wars stories” instead of “Star Wars films” or “movies” in that quote. Does he literally mean that Lucasfilm is only developingStar Wars Storymovies – AKA standalone spin-offs likeRogue Oneor the young Han Solo film – and that they’re not moving forward with the traditional episodes beyondColin Trevorrow’sStar Wars: Episode IX? Those episodes tell the story of the Skywalker saga, and it would be a monumental occasion if that saga came to a definitive end in two years.
This morning, it was announced that Iger renewed his contract with The Walt Disney Company through July of 2019, which means he’ll be able to walk off into the sunset just one month afterEpisode IXconcludes the new trilogy. Is Iger looking to further cement his legacy by sticking around for what might be the final Skywalker-centricStar Warsmovie before Disney and Lucasfilm shift gears and take the franchise out into the further, unexplored reaches of a galaxy far, far away?
That’d be quite the power play on his part, forever marking him as the person who paved the way for Kathleen Kennedy and her team to finish the third trilogy George Lucas thought about all those years ago. Or maybe Iger was just speaking generally in that statement, and the creative team is looking to continue the tales of Rey, Poe, Finn, and any other characters who survive the new trilogy for years to come.
Either way, with acquisitions of Pixar, Marvel, and Lucasfilm under his belt, Iger may very well go down as one of the most influential people in Hollywood history when all is said and done.
