Rian Johnson Confirms his Star Wars Trilogy is Happening
This is why you don’t publish unsubstantiated rumors. It is also why you don’t then repeat said rumors without checking the sourcing. Yesterday, a website by the name of SuperBroMovies claimed that Star Wars: The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson was no longer creating a new Star Wars trilogy. Their post has since been deleted. A bunch of outlets picked up this rumor, however, so the story ultimately went wide. Johnson himself took to Twitter to politely debunk the story.
No it isn’t true, I’m still working on the trilogy. With all due respect to the movie bros, who I’m sure are lovely kind bros with good fraternal intentions.
— Rian Johnson (@rianjohnson) February 14, 2019
Johnson’s The Last Jedi was, to our eye, the most visually resplendent Star Wars film ever made. It also had one of the most show-stopping lightsaber battles of all time. There were some rabid fans who had issues with the film—Johnson’s handling of their animus has been a masterclass in grace—and therefore when the “news” broke that his trilogy was off, a lot of folks were all over it. We’re happy that the rumors were proved false. Johnson took real risks in Last Jedi, giving us a weary, reluctant Luke and the genuinely thrilling, evolving dynamic between Adam Driver’s Sith-leaning Kylo Ren and Daisy Ridley’s potent Jedi-in-training Rey. For the new trilogy, Johnson is free to do some serious world-building. He won’t be taking over characters created by others, and he won’t be tasked with shepherding a massive, decades-spanning storyline another step forward.
Johnson’s trilogy is being developed concurrently with another brand new Star Wars series from Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. Word is they won’t be connected, giving Johnson yet more leeway to envision a whole new world and set of characters.
Whether you loved The Last Jedi or not, there is no question that Johnson is a passionate, hugely talented storyteller. We’re glad the rumors of his leaving the new trilogy were just that.
Featured image: Star Wars: The Last Jedi. L to R: Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo) and Director Rian Johnson..Photo: David James..©2017 Lucasfilm Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
