ZOUNDS! A shockwave ripped the internet in half this afternoon as Disney announced its purchase of LucasFilm for north of four billion bucks – putting Darth Vader, Jack Sparrow, Snow White, Boba Fett, Iron Man, Kermit the Frog and Luke Skywalker under one roof for the first time in history. What does it mean? Where will it go? Mamo does the guesswork!
Mamo #278: There's A Party in the Ewok Village Tonight [ 31:15 | 0.01 MB ] Play Now | Play in PopupTo download this episode, use this URL: http://rowthree.com/audio/mamo/mamo278.mp3
Wow… that was fast! Now to listen…
A NEW HOPE
I hope George Lucas uses some of his money to finance Mishima, Ran-like film projects.
My first reaction was that this was an April Fool’s joke. This so threw me for a loop.
It was interesting to see this bubbling on Twitter without any direct reference to any news article. With all sorts of fake hurricane Sandy photos going around Twitter, it was definitely something to take with a grain of salt. Then a few places were making claim to a press release, but not from any site that I had heard of before, so I looked up Disney’s press releases and came across a link to their official press release that had just been put out seconds earlier. Discovering that not only that the deal was real but they were going to make another movie, which I hadn’t even seen on Twitter at that point.
Yeah, like I stated in my post… I’m in nerd-shock over this news.
When Disney bought Marvel, Marvel had complete control in what they were doing, while Disney was very hands-off. It seemed that Marvel just got access to Disney resources.
So I honestly don’t think Disney is going to be involved much in the creative decisions. Kathleen Kennedy seems to be the one running the show at LucasFilm and will be responsible for good or bad the direction of future Star Wars movies. That said it looks like George Lucas will still be an influence as a creative consultant.
The only area that Disney seems to be pushing on is making new movies, which I didn’t think would be happening without them taking over. They had the same push at Pixar to make a Toy Story 3 sequel, which Pixar didn’t want at the time, but that turned out as a good movie thanks to the talent involved.
I’m in the camp that hates the prequels and have been pretty much done with Star Wars since then. Although I’m not above having some fun with Star Wars related video games.
With all that said, I’m a lot more interested in this than if Lucas wanted to make some more movies. As mentioned Toy Story 3 happened because of the Disney push and could have easily been a bad retread, but ended up great. They could make a great Star Wars film with the right talent, it all depends on who they pick.
I think creative consultant is a perfect position for Lucas at this point, no? Like you, the prequels left me feeling burnt and, maybe it was partially growing up, but I lost a lot of steam for lightsabers, Jedi, and bathrobe wardrobes after that. If there are going to be new Star Wars movies, this might be the right direction.
I think the Mamo Matts dropped what they were doing in mere seconds as the klaxxon went off. They then slid down fire-poles and hopped into secret vehicles in a race to the nearest cafe for a Mamopod. KUDOS on the rapid turn-around guys!
This is actually what happened.
I’ll also add having a movie with Buzz Lightyear, Dark Vader, Iron Man and Gonzo might make a horrible movie and expensive to pull off. However, where it is cheap to do these things is comics and I wouldn’t be surprised if these things aren’t mixed up within comics. If anything a comic Marvel cross over with Star Wars. Once again whether or not this will be any good is a completely different question.
Unfortunately, for Dark Horse Comics, I think it is only a matter of time before they lose the Star Wars license. I don’t read the Star Wars comics, but I’m a fan of Dark Horse and it’s too bad that the small comic company will lose one of their biggest and profitable licenses.
Here’s the answer to one of the questions that the 2 Matt’s were asking. FOX will retain the rights to the existing Star Wars films, Disney only gets access to new Star Wars content going forward:
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2012/10/30/fox-retain-rights-to-all-existing-star-wars-films/
Great show, Matt and Matt…
What makes me sad is that Lucas, from his student-film-days at least, wanted to become an independent force and wanted to fight the system and empire for ultimate freedom. No matter how bad those prequels were, it was his and his own. Now, it will be a product of the corporate machine ( which unfortunately we love!)
He has finally become Darth Vader after all.
Yeah I’m a little puzzled at how happy people are that the original creator is stepping down and a giant corporation will take over as proprietor of the franchise.
While I think he has made some poor decisions, I have always admired Lucas for having a vision, being passionate about his vision and being progressive about updating Star Wars as the years go by.
I will definitely check out the new movies, I’m a Star Wars fan, but I don’t have this unbridled joy that others seem to have with this news.
I agree and that is because my personal lack of Star Wars fandom (1138 4 LYFE!)
Puzzled they’re happy? The entirety of the adult Star Wars fan base has been screaming for Lucas to surrender creative control of the franchise for years. I’m mostly just surprised he went for it.
The adult Star Wars fan base has always been one of the crazier seemingly more entitled ones out there.
Maybe the majority has been screaming, not the entirety. I’m a huge Star Wars fan, but I have never felt the need to criticize Lucas to the degree that fans most do.
Lucas felt that the OT was not up to his artistic vision. So he made changes to those films. Do I like the Han Greedo changes and the Jedi Dance sequence? No. But I can understand Lucas wanting to change a work that he is unhappy with. I think anyone that has dabbled in any kind of art and been unsatisfied with their work should be able to identify with that feeling. There are also a lot of minor changes that go largely unheralded. Lightsaber improvements, and matte line clean ups that really make the films look good now.
I also don’t begrudge him making the Prequel trilogy. ILM has revolutionized the fx industry. Lucas probably thought I would love to make Star Wars films again with these new fx tools that are light years beyond what I could do in the original trilogy.
Are the prequels what I envisioned? No. Do I understand Lucas, a wanting to make Star Wars films with updated tools that his company has developed? Yes, and I respect that decision regardless of how I feel about the quality of the films.
I think the Star Wars fan base has largely decided to throw the baby out with the bathwater in terms of Lucas. That is they can only see the negatives. That is unfortunate in my mind.
**
As for Disney Star Wars movies, I hope they are good. But I would not be surprised if they are slick marketing vehicles that feel much more like the Marvel franchise than the OT. My gut is leaning towards the former, but I would be thrilled if it’s the later.
I don’t begrudge Lucas either updating the original trilogy or making the prequel trilogy, disappointing or no. My entire grudge against him is the his refusal to make the original version of the trilogy available to those who would rather have that version or who want to have the ability to compare the two. It’s basically against every academic and archivist-leaning bone in my body to refuse to allow the multiple versions to exist together, and I don’t understand it.
If he’d just release those original versions, I’d be fine with everything else he’s ever done.
Yep, in a nutshell that’s my entire stance on the matter as well. Lucas has purposefully destroyed all efforts to preserve a true classic of the art form.
As Jandy knows, I wrote about this at length last year, but for anyone else:
http://tederick.tumblr.com/post/9812955324/the-last-plea-to-george-lucas
Matt, that is a very nice essay.
I would like to say at the top that I’m with you and Jandy about what I would want from Lucas. I want the OT in their original form on modern formats and sequel films that evoke the magic of the OT.
Where I differ or am still struggling is how to view Lucas.
From an archivist or historic prospective, Lucas is attempting to rewrite history. Your point about the national film registry is a strong one. What he is doing runs contrary to preserving history. There is no argument from me there.
Although, the thought that Lucas has destroyed the original films has never held a lot of water with me. In order to create the SE Lucasfilm must have High Quality digital forms of the original trilogy. In order to layer on new CGI you need to have something underneath it. That something is the original films in high quality digital format. Lucas might not make it available, but those original films certainly exist and could be made for public consumption.
Anyone working in digital fx and digital editing is wise enough to have backups of their work. In the case of Star Wars and ILM I’m guessing there are backups of backups of backups. Again Lucas not making them publicly available is not the same as destroying them.
The bigger question for me is how do you treat artistic vision? Lets assume Lucas genuinely believes the SE are better and is unsatisfied with the originals. Lucas wants only the best version of his films put out in public and because he owns everything he has had the power to make that happen.
What Matt argues goes something like this: Because the artwork you have created is very culturally significant, we won’t allow you to change or limit access to it in its original form even though you as the artist might be unsatisfied with it.
From a creator or artistic viewpoint that is a very troubling argument to me. Who decides when something is culturally significant enough that it should be enshrined or taken from a creator? What happens to “criminals” like Lucas when they restrict access or destroy culturally significant artwork? In your view is this honestly a crime in the legal sense of the word?
So the reason I’m conflicted is I think you can look at what Lucas has done from an artistic or archivist perspective. I think as an artist he is mostly (I’m aware that film is a collaborative effort) in the clear. As an archivist, what he is doing is clearly wrong. What takes precedence artist or archivist? The artist is clearly going to side with the art.
I’m concerned with the same issues, and can’t give a definitive answer on how/when something becomes culturally significant enough to remove it from the control of the artist. Like pornography, though, I think we know it when we see it.
Clearly when a film like Star Wars is inducted into the National Registry, it is because of the value of the original version and the impact that version had on the history of film. Specifically, the advances in effects, etc.; the very things Lucas wiped out with the Special Edition. This is a pretty clear know-it-when-we-see-it case: common sense tells us that the archived version of Star Wars should be the historically significant one.
(The Special Edition was marginally significant, too – but for different reasons.)
I support artists’ rights but have to believe in cultural/historical rights too; as I’m fond of saying, if Da Vinci showed up today, we wouldn’t let him paint over the Mona Lisa. If I were one of the craftsmen who helped make the original Star Wars, I’d be enraged at the destruction of my creative legacy, even understanding that craft work on films is, and always has been, the property of the film owner the minute it’s turned in.
I don’t see why the two have to be in conflict. Let Lucas make his definitive versions, and label them as his official versions, the ones he’s satisfied with. That’s fine with me. But let the others co-exist as well, even if he thinks of them as prototypes. Blade Runner exists in at least five different versions. Ridley Scott has made clear which one he prefers, but the others are all there to see and compare.
Actually, by suppressing the originals and replacing them with newer versions, Lucas suggests that the ’70s versions aren’t valuable, thus negating the almost incalculable impact they had on filmmaking, special effects technology, and movie-going itself at the time. It’s almost like he’s denying his own achievement, which is weird to me. But how can we know how far we’d come in the ’70s, and how far we’ve come since then (assuming you think, as Lucas apparently does, that it’s an ever-improving continuum – not everyone agrees) if we don’t have the examples available to view and compare? It may not be a crime in the legal sense, but it’s a travesty against film history and scholarship.
Artistic vision and Historical preservation don’t have to be in conflict. But George has elected to put them in conflict by not releasing the original trilogy on modern formats. At least not yet. Keep in mind the DVDs were released 3 times and the last time they contained the non-SE originals.
The question then becomes, in light of that decision how do you view him?
A lot of people hate him for taking drastic measures to promote his preferred vision of the Star Wars universe.
I’m much less vitriolic. While I wish he would take the Blade Runner approach, he hasn’t. I understand from artistic or creative standpoint why he has made the decisions he has made. While I don’t always like his decisions, I can respect them to a large degree.
Also I think having popular opinion dictate artistic or creative presentation gets into strange territory that I’m not entirely comfortable with.
Bleeding Cool with some more info from a Disney conference call:
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2012/10/30/more-info-on-the-disneylucasfilm-deal-regarding-what-they-bought-indiana-jones-and-tv-series/
Apparently part of the purchase was “pretty extensive & detailed treatment for the next 3 movies” says Disney CEO Bob Iger. So looks like Lucas will still have his finger prints in the next 3 movies.
“There are some encumbrances with Indiana Jones and that is from Paramount … We didn’t ascribe any value to the Indiana Jones franchise. It doesn’t factor into the equation with this acquisition.” – Bob Iger
Looks like Star Wars was mainly what they were after and that if another Indiana Jones movies happens, it might be a joint venture between Paramount & Disney.
yes but it will be filtered Lucas, ideally taking the good stuff and disposing of the blindly indulgent, uninteresting stuff. I am very optimistic, they want to make something special, this is not just about getting bums in seats.
The comparisons to Marvel properties are ill-conceived – there is no cinematic corollary for what Star Wars means in the pop cultural imagination of those raised on it. With Marvel the ambition was to appeal to the comic book fans and funnel towards the summer blockbuster formula, with maybe Nolan’s Batman as a kind of benchmark… the benchmark here is the trilogy that those working at Disney probably saw at the impressionable age, cementing their future ambitions to work in the industry. I don’t see them just trying to make a summer blockbuster, they ought to be very worried about the legacy of what they are making in the shadow of what came before, the originals. No one has had a crack at this before, the importance cannot be lost on these people.
Nerds have come together around the world to source things that have been said about the sequels in the past on the sequel Wikipedia page.
Back in the early-80s, Lucas said that that Episode VII would be 20, but maybe even 30 or 40 years after the end of Return of the Jedi and that it was also planned that Luke, Han, and Leia would appear in their “60s or 70s.”
Hmm.
Interesting link with a lot of contradicting comments from Lucas over the years.
For contrast:
Lucasfilm: $4,005,000,000
Marvel: $4,000,000,000
Pixar: $7,400,000,000
Profit at Apple in the last 3 months: $8,200,000,000
talk amongst yourselves.
Note Disney bought Marvel for $4.24 billion, just a bit more than LucasFilm was sold for.
Also as someone else has pointed out to me, the Steve Jobs estate owns a big chunk of Disney, as part of the Pixar sale, which in turn now own Star Wars, which owns the brand name Droid, that is licensed out to Motorola for their Android phones owned by Google. So the Steve Jobs estate is now partly owns part of what markets Android phones.
Latest video & interview with Lucas via one of Disney’s YouTube channels:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIkqX5fG_tA
He says he has the trilogy planned out including how it ends and movies that follow that.
Sounds like Lucas was in the process of getting a new movie started since he stepped down from LucasFilm earlier this summer. I wouldn’t be surprised if there are announcements of writers and possible directors in the next few weeks.
Also interesting is that this adds to the number of people who were involved & likely knew about that the sale was in progress for quite some time. Which makes it more surprising that none of this leaked out, but I guess those who were given a chance to work on the new Star Wars movie didn’t want to mess it up.
I am more interested myself in how this will affect Dark Horse comics, since they are the current owners of the Star Wars comics license and Disney owns Marvel.
Now I don’t read any Star Wars comics but I think a large part of what keeps Dark Horse afloat is Star Wars comics.
Dark Horse Comics president Mike Richardson says the following:
“Dark Horse and LucasFilm have a strong partnership which spans over 20 years, and has produced multiple characters and story lines which are now part of the Star Wars lore. Star Wars will be with us for the near future. Obviously, this deal changes the landscape, so we’ll all have to see what it means for the future.”
http://ca.ign.com/articles/2012/10/30/will-star-wars-comics-stay-at-dark-horse
No one seems to be able to track down when exactly Dark Horse’s license to Star Wars is up for renewal. However, Marvel had the Star Wars license before Dark Horse and did a lousy job with it. There’s been some Tron comics under Marvel, but nothing beyond a handful of issues. Basically Marvel hasn’t done a very good job with Disney properties and there is nothing that shows they would have any idea what to do with Star Wars. So we will have to see how it all goes.
Tim Burton directing the Grim Fandango movie.
Also unmentioned in most of the coverage: apparently Disney owns Industrial Light & Magic now, too.
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118061445
Most interesting aspect of this that we missed, in fact. The deal just has too much keiretsu to be able to be fully grokked all at once. For starters, what happens if they decide to merge ILM with the tech guys at Pixar, and co-develop everything going forward?
And also Skywalker Sound, which still runs post-production sound on nearly every major American film.
For some reason this episode didn’t download from the feed and I had to stream it.
Anyways, on the subject of “characters can be in the theme parks now,” you seem to have forgotten that there are already a number of attractions at Disney themeparks that were created as collaborations with Lucasfilm:
- Captain EO (opened 1986 – Disneyland)
- Star Tours (opened 1987 – Disneyland)
- Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! (opened 1989 – Disney World)
- Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye (opened 1995 – Disneyland)
Actually Sean, Captain EO has bugger all to do with anything included in this merger, as it was a Michael Jackson vehicle that Lucas produced as a favour to his mentor, Francis Ford Coppola. Are you also anticipating the jungle cruise being turned into a Heart of Darkness ride?
Lindelof acted genuinely shocked about the news of Star Wars on twitter, I don’t think he was in on the loop. I think he should be – the Abrams/Reeves/Lindelof crew in some capacity should be involved.
and yes, Lindelof is my Christ.
My wife almost coughed up a lung when that little podcasting bon-mot was tossed into the air via our little portable speakers in her writing office by Price.
Hilarious over reaction in terms of metaphor/analogy.
Mark Hamill spoke with EW. Here are some highlights:
“I had no idea that George was going to sell to Disney until I read it online like everybody else. He did tell us last summer about wanting to go on and do [Episodes] VII, VIII, and IX, and that [newly appointed Lucasfilm president] Kathleen Kennedy would be doing them. … I missed his call yesterday, but I spoke to him maybe three weeks ago. But until we know more, it’s hard to make any comment other than congratulations to George.”
“Yeah, last August, he asked Carrie and I to have lunch with him and we did. I thought he was going to talk about either his retirement or the Star Wars TV series that I’ve heard about — which I don’t think we were going to be involved in anyway, because that takes place between the prequels and the ones we were in and, if Luke were in them, he’d be anywhere from a toddler to a teenager so they’d get an age-appropriate actor — or the 3-D releases. So when he said, ‘We decided we’re going to do Episodes VII, VIII, and IX,” I was just gobsmacked.’ … I’m anxious to know what’s going on, but the main story [yesterday] was the sale to Disney. I have mixed feelings about that, but they haven’t done badly by Marvel and the Muppets and Pixar. It’s one of those big decisions that at first seems unusual but then the more you look at it, the more it makes sense.”
Hamill denies knowing anything, but might a meeting with he and Carrie Fisher suggest they should be expected to be involved in some way?
The younger Clone War fans & prequel fans will likely watch the new Star Wars no matter what. However if LucasFilm / Disney want to bring in the adult fans who hated the prequels then getting Mark Hamill & Carrie Fisher even if just as cameo appearances I think would go a long way.