Star Wars fan organizes effort to put George Lucas back behind the camera

Will Robinson
Updated
Petition seeks George Lucas' return to direct 'Star Wars: Episode IX'

George Lucas began the original Star Wars trilogy almost 40 years ago, and there are some who would like to see him finish the newest one.

A Brazilian fan named Yuri Luiz started a petition at Change.org asking Disney, LucasFilms, and its president Kathleen Kennedy to hire Lucas to direct Episode IX. As of this posting, 7,507 fans have signed on.

“Bring back George Lucas for the Star Wars movies. Put the father of the franchise as director of Episode IX,” the petition reads. “We have no problem with [Jurassic World director] Colin Trevorrow, but he’s not the right guy to direct Star Wars Episode IX.

“George Lucas as director of Episode IX would be the perfect way to end this new trilogy,” it continues, “and make an epic farewell between the Father of Star Wars and the whole universe of the galaxy far, far away …”

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Not everyone would welcome Lucas back. In fact, an entire cottage industry has sprung out of widespread dissatisfaction with Lucas, based on his tinkering with the original films on several home-video editions, as well as an underwhelming reception to the otherwise financially successful prequels. There was even a 2010 documentary, The People vs. George Lucas, that examined this love-hate relationship.

Lucas sold the franchise to Disney for $4 billion in 2012, and has expressed ambivalence that his ideas for future chapters were basically ignored by the new Star Wars braintrust. He recently half-joked that selling Star Wars to Disney was like selling his kids to “white slavers,” comments he quickly apologized for. The 71-year-old made it clear, though, that he was far more interested in making small movies for his friends and family than creating popular blockbusters.

The Force Awakens, the first Star Wars film without any Lucas involvement, has earned strong reviews and grossed over $1.5 billion worldwide. Barring a change, Trevorrow will direct Episode IX, after Rian Johnson’s (Looper) take on Episode VIII.