Rian Johnson expands ‘Star Wars’ trilogy

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The Star Wars that inspired four decades of passionate fandom appears to be slowly but surely fading as “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” prepares to descend on December 15, giving way to a newer generation of intergalactic rebels and their foes.

As "Star Wars" fans gear up for "The Last Jedi", its star and writer-director shed some light on how the franchise is mapping a future beyond the beloved characters.

Rian Johnson. /AP Photo

Rian Johnson, writer-director of “The Last Jedi", will be overseeing a new trilogy of "Star Wars" films that will explore far-away corners of the galaxy, Walt Disney Co. said in November.

"I'm just in the very beginning phases of coming up with it so right now the sky is kind of the limit," Johnson said while promoting the movie last week.

"The appeal of it to me is to do a new story told over three movies, to have that kind of canvas, to be in the Star Wars world and to have the feel of a Star Wars film," he said.

Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) in “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” in theaters on December 15. /Lucasfilm via AP

The new stories will not follow the Skywalker saga, which George Lucas began with 1977's "Episode IV: A New Hope".

Disney purchased Lucasfilm in 2012 for four billion US dollars, and rebooted the "Star Wars" franchise with the Skywalker trilogy and standalone films like "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story".

Johnson's "The Last Jedi" picks up the Skywalker story after 2015's blockbuster "The Force Awakens", in which a new generation of characters was introduced with returning favorites Han Solo (Harrison Ford), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill).

Fisher died last year.

General Leia (Carrie Fisher) in “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” in theaters on December 15. /Lucasfilm via AP

Now it's just a matter of putting "The Last Jedi" out in the world.

Financially, there's not much to worry about - it's tracking to open somewhere in the 200 million US dollar range. Also box office and the expectations and hopes of a loyal fan base, who have been burned before, are two very different things.

"Having been a Star Wars fan myself for the past 40 years, I know intimately how passionate they are about it and how everyone has stuff they love and hate in every single movie. That takes the pressure off a little bit just thinking, 'OK, there's going to be stuff that everyone likes, there's going to be stuff that people don't like and it's going to be a mixture,'" Johnson said.

And with a smile and a shrug, he adds: "That's what being a Star Wars fan is."

Source(s): AP ,Reuters