I’ve always defended Kathleen Kennedy. Anyone whose production resume includes Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Jurassic Park, Back to the Future and Congo (fight me) is clearly doing something right. After Disney’s purchase of Lucasfilm in 2012, I’ve tended to give her the benefit of the doubt and I agree with her overall strategy of making Star Wars appeal to as many demographics as possible. Plus, there’s the fact that a lot of the hate thrown her way comes from the internet’s worst misogynists.
But now? Well, after the dismal Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, her position has become very shaky. The inexplicable decision not to plan out the Sequel Trilogy in advance or settle on a single director resulted in a series of films without a clear direction or theme. Even worse, if the rumors are true, then her interference with Episode IX ruined the movie. And that’s leaving aside the behind-the-scenes drama and ultimate failure of Solo: A Star Wars Story, the lack of plans for future films, and a stifling creative atmosphere that has directors concluding that working with Star Wars is more trouble than it’s worth.
The last straw for me came yesterday when the Obi-Wan Disney Plus show was put on indefinite hiatus after Kennedy reportedly expressed disapproval with Drive screenwriter Hossein Amini’s scripts. Who knows, maybe they really weren’t up to scratch? But given that she signed off on The Rise of Skywalker, I don’t exactly trust her judgment on this.
Her contract is set to expire in 2021, and I doubt Disney will let her continue to mismanage one of their biggest franchises for a second longer than is necessary. Fans agree, too, and here’s just a selection of reactions from Twitter:
we need to get kathleen kennedy fired IMMEDIATELY https://t.co/yYvClVUygI
— kenny (@nailsbat) January 24, 2020
Kathleen Kennedy scrapping Obi-Wan Kenobi show (2020, colorized): pic.twitter.com/iWiBNRQ3gy
— Sad Kylo Ren (@KyloIsSad) January 24, 2020
Kathleen Kennedy should be fired at this point. https://t.co/q8p7Pgu6Np
— KF (@KFTragic) January 23, 2020
Ahh I see Lucasfilm and Kathleen Kennedy are Fucking up again when it comes to this #Kenobi Disney+ Series… how hard can this be boys and girl? This is the easiest fucking series to get done! #Kenobi #StarWars pic.twitter.com/SPHhY5Kx3w
— MOVIEDEATHS (@MOVIEDEATHBLOWS) January 24, 2020
Star Wars fans to Kathleen Kennedy when they find out she put the Obi-Wan Kenobi show on indefinite hold: pic.twitter.com/C78ZRt4G4F
— Cinememes (@Cinememes_) January 24, 2020
https://twitter.com/BIinkJoe/status/1220493060653617152?s=20
Kathleen Kennedy is the worst thing to happen to starwars since jar jar binks,
Mr Lucas should never have sold !!!!— jason field🇺🇦 (@jasonfield1975) January 24, 2020
Star Wars twitter the day Kathleen Kennedy’s contract expires pic.twitter.com/iJK87kLeVF
— Shit Reylos Say (@ShitReylosSay) January 24, 2020
If you need me, I’ll be here looking in Kathleen Kennedy’s direction, tapping my watch expectantly and occasionally nodding towards the exit. She’s had a great career, has made some good decisions while at Lucasfilm and is no doubt a very nice person. But it’s difficult to deny that Star Wars has gone off the rails over the last few years and the blame for that has to go right to the top.
