Liam Neeson believes there are too many Star Wars motion pictures and exhibits in manufacturing which might be “diluting” the legendary sci-fi franchise.
The actor behind iconic Jedi Knight Qui-Gon Jinn instructed Watch What Happens Live! (opens in new tab) that Lucasfilm and Disney have to rein of their plans for that galaxy far, far-off. The explanation? The sheer variety of Star Wars spin-offs are taking the magic away from the movie trilogies that many viewers have been introduced up on.
Requested if he can be keen on reprising his function as Qui-Gin in a Disney Plus sequence – similar to his fellow Star Wars actor Ewan McGregor did in Obi-Wan Kenobi – Neeson bluntly stated: “No, I am not. There are such a lot of spinoffs of Star Wars. It’s diluting it to me, and it’s taken away the thriller and the magic in a bizarre manner.”
Neeson, who made a short cameo in Obi-Wan Kenobi‘s last episode as a Drive Ghost model of Qui-Gon, added: “It was good to try this little bit with Ewan after 25 years. I solely present up within the final episode and had two traces of dialog. That was good, I liked it, however that is it.”
If Neeson’s feedback about not desirous to star in a, nicely, Star Wars TV present are like a dagger to the guts, diehard followers should not be too downbeat. The Irish actor has beforehand stated he’d consider playing Qui-Gon again under one condition – it must be a film, not a TV sequence. With Lucasfilm trying to the long run with its Star Wars model, although, a Qui-Gon solo movie could be very unlikely.
Evaluation: Disney Plus present and inform us all the things, Liam
Neeson’s feedback concerning the Star Wars franchise may sound like he is moaning about nothing – however is he proper?
In our view, there’s some fact to what Neeson is saying. Ever since The Mandalorian‘s first season debuted on Disney Plus in November 2019, there’s been a glut of Star Wars spin-off exhibits – and, unsurprisingly, some have been higher obtained than others. Andor season 1 and The Mandalorian have been hailed as top-tier tv by followers and critics. The likes of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Star Wars: Visions, although, have not set the world alight.
Initially, a complete of seven live-action and animated TV sequence – the aforementioned quartet, plus The Dangerous Batch, Tales of the Jedi, and The E book of Boba Fett – would not sound like rather a lot. Nonetheless, consider Star Wars: Resistance and The Clone Wars – each of which solely completed airing in early 2020 – and we have seen 9 Star Wars exhibits within the final three years. Add in different forthcoming exhibits like The Mandalorian season 3, Ahsoka Tano, and Skeleton Crew, and all of a sudden Star Wars’ TV line-up seems to be very packed.
That is not all, both. With Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker marking the top of the newest movie trilogy, Solo: A Star Wars Story – the primary film spin-off – has been launched. There’s been fixed speak of different spin-off motion pictures, too, together with the in-limbo Rogue Squadron, an untitled Taika Waititi-directed flick, a Damon Lindelof-created film, and a Shawn Levy-produced movie. We’ll reportedly hear extra about this quartet at Star Wars Celebration in April.
Probably, then, 13 new Star Wars productions – 4 movies and 9 TV sequence – could possibly be launched in a seven-year interval (late 2019 to circa 2026, relying on how rapidly Waititi and firm get their motion pictures made and launch them in theaters). Positive, that solely quantities to 2 new tasks each 12 months, nevertheless it is likely to be sufficient to trigger Star Wars fatigue amongst followers.
Marvel followers and normal cinephiles are already beginning to develop uninterested in the sheer quantity of Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) motion pictures and TV exhibits launched in recent times. The truth is, Marvel President Kevin Feige has suggested that the studio is re-evaluating its current line-up, with the view to bringing out much less content material yr on yr. Which means we’ll see important modifications to its MCU Phase 5 and MCU Part 6 plans.
Lucasfilm ought to look to take a leaf out of Marvel’s e book, even with returning CEO Bob Iger claiming that Disney will “lean more durable” into its greatest franchises, equivalent to Star Wars, to enhance its income streams. Much less is extra, because the saying goes, and Lucasfilm (and Disney) would do nicely to heed the warning indicators from Marvel and rethink – if it is not already – what number of Star Wars exhibits and movies they plan to launch within the coming years.
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