Rian Johnson and Mark Hamill Discuss The Freedom of Creating a New STAR WARS Trilogy Not Bound To Old Icons

Lucasfilm is in the process of developing two new Star Wars trilogies that are set in different corners and times of the Star Wars universe. One is being created by Rian Johnson (The Last Jedi) the other is being built by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss (Game of Thrones). Each of these creative talents are going to bring something completely new, fresh, and different to the Star Wars universe. These stories are not bound to anything that has ever come before it, so there's a lot of freedom that comes with that.

During an interview with IGN, Johnson talks about that freedom of creating a new story set in the Star Wars universe and his approach, saying:

"We're just at the very beginning of figuring out what this new thing is going to be, but part of the excitement of it is really trying to hone in on 'what is Star Wars?' What was Star Wars for me the very first time I saw it when I was a little kid? What are the combination of elements that just made me want to jump into the screen, and made me want to go home and instantly start telling my own stories?"

It's going to be very interesting to see what Star Wars will be like without its most iconic and recognizable elements. The filmmaker continues:

"Once you get past the things that are the iconography of Star Wars - once you say, okay, if it doesn't have the Falcon; if it doesn't have someone with Skywalker as their last name; if we don't go to Tatooine, what is it? What is it at its essence? It's a really exciting question, and I think it's something that has to be answered at some point. So let's figure it out."

Mark Hamill also weighed in on what the potential for Star Wars stories that are separate from the Skywalker Saga and also shares his thoughts on the standalone Star Wars Story films saying:

"I think the potential for all the new incarnations is they can have their own identity. You can have Rogue One be that gritty war movie, and Han Solo he's a rogue, and a womanizer, and a gambler - there's a much more comedic feel to [his film]. That's what I'm hoping - especially since they're standalone films, they don't have to follow the structure of a three-act play, they can be as diverse as possible within the Star Wars universe."

He goes on to say that as these new films get made, that the franchise's signature humor won't be lost:

"That's the challenge. You want to have all the elements that identify them as Star Wars films, with the action and the special effects and the characters and the humor - I hope they don't lose the humor, although Rogue One was obviously pretty serious. But have the things that people want in a Star Wars film, but then push the envelope as best you can and make as many different kinds of movies as you can."

We have no idea when Lucasfilm plans on launching these new Star Wars trilogies, but I'm excited about seeing what they end up giving the fans.