Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy Consulted George Lucas Before The Rise of Skywalker

As we approach the premiere date for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the saga that George Lucas began 42-years ago nears its end. Sure, Star Wars will live on, but the Skywalker Saga that Lucas dreamed up four decades ago and has spanned three distinct trilogies is finally coming to a close. Co-writer and director J.J. Abrams, his cast and his crew will have the final say over the fates of Luke, Leia, and our new heroes like Rey, Finn, and Poe. Yet Entertainment Weekly confirmed that Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy and Abrams sat down with Lucas before the script process began.

“We sat down with George [Lucas] for a long meeting before we ever put pen to paper on this final episode, so we had the benefit of his thoughts. We took a lot of notes,” Kennedy says. “For something that’s been here for 40 years entertaining audiences, and something that George initially set out to do with a kind of three-act saga with these three trilogies, I think we felt that we should honor and respect that. And we’re taking the time to really look at where this is going from the standpoint of a saga, not just looking at what the next 3 movies might be. We’re really looking at what is the next decade of storytelling so that we can actually build the mythology.”

We’ve already heard how hard Abrams, co-writer Chris Terrio, and the entire team worked in crafting the film’s ending, but this is the first time we’ve heard that they consulted with Lucas directly before that work began. 

“It’s a long process, but we always look for that core group to kind of arrive at solidarity in a decision, and we got to that on this pretty quickly,” Kennedy added. It’s fitting that in that long process, they spoke to the man who began it all.

For more on Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, check out this clip of flying Stormtroopers, watch the Knights of Ren and a Sith Trooper in action, behold the new character posters, read this helpful Star Wars timeline, watch the latest TV spot, read our breakdown of the final trailer, watch the final trailer itself, read our break down of a bunch of new images, and a have look at Rey and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver)’s complicated relationship.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits theaters on December 20, 2019.

Featured image: Oscar Isaac is Poe Dameron, Daisy Ridley is Rey and Anthony Daniels is C-3PO in STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER. Courtesy Lucasfilm/Walt Disney Studios