It’s been proven time and again that the fans of that galaxy far, far away can be difficult to please, but the showrunner behind Star Wars: The Clone Wars isn’t afraid of backlash from the community.
In fairness, though, why would Dave Filoni be afraid to begin with, given his overwhelming popularity among fans? After all, he is the creator behind two of the most well-received Star Wars stories in the history of the franchise. After turning Rebels into a successful run just like its predecessor, Filoni returned with the seventh and final season of The Clone Wars this year, giving fans the original ending that was scrapped due to the show getting canned after six seasons.
As you’d expect, the last chapter absolutely knocked it out of the park, too, and the Siege of Mandalore proved to be every bit worth the wait. Now, the storyteller is helping Jon Favreau with the highly acclaimed Mandalorian on Disney Plus. You don’t really need us to tell you that the new live-action series has grown more popular than even the main saga of films, and fans are patiently awaiting the next season, slated for release later this year.
Does Filoni ever worry about getting it wrong, though? Well, according to what he told Deadline, the executive producer isn’t afraid of negative backlash from fans.
“I don’t really ever think of it in those terms. George and I, we never really talked in those terms as far as what the fans would allow,” he revealed. “It was more his experiences making the films and more his sensibilities that we always discussed. Ultimately, when it comes down to it, as the storyteller you have to tell a story that you like and hope other people like it too. I think that there are enough shared sensibilities of what we all liked about Star Wars as far as this being an adventure, it’s fun, there’s a great deal of tension and mythology, but you know, everyone can come at it from a different point of view.”
Learning that Lucas didn’t really care about what fans want from the story is hardly surprising. I mean, he did write the Prequel Trilogy in a way that undermined everything that made Star Wars special in the first place. But look at us now, many years down the road, and we can’t help but feel love and appreciation for those movies and their epic moments.
Still, it’s strange to hear that the Star Wars: The Clone Wars showrunner shares Lucas’ sentiments. Though maybe Disney should take a page out of their book, as The Rise of Skywalker proved once and for all that catering to fan opinion will ultimately backfire.
