Colin Trevorrow and Star Wars: Episode IX have gone their separate ways.
That’s the announcement that shook the Internet on Tuesday evening, when Lucasfilm announced that Trevorrow, best known for resurrecting Jurassic World, is no longer directing the 2019 Star Wars flick. Subsequent reports have gone on to claim that the relationship between director and studio had become “unmanageable,” and ongoing script issues ultimately forced Lucasfilm to hit the hard reset. It’s not all bad news, though, as screenwriter Jack Thorne was hired back in August to fine-tune the pitch submitted by Trevorrow and his long-time writing partner, Derek Connolly, so we struggle to imagine that Episode IX is starting over from scratch.
Still, the search for a director continues unabated. Word is The Last Jedi‘s Rian Johnson has been earmarked as a potential replacement for the outgoing Trevorrow, though whether the Episode VIII helmer wants to dive straight back into the Skywalker saga is up for question. But there is another candidate.
His name? George Lucas, series mastermind and former head of Lucasfilm, who told Rolling Stone that he’s always wanted to helm the final Star Wars movie. Now, before we jump to conclusions, that interview, one uncovered by the eagle-eyed folks over at Mashable, was published in 1977. What’s more, Lucas went on to direct all three prequels and has since retired from the filmmaking scene. He still holds a deep, unabiding love for the Star Wars franchise though and has a close working relationship with Kathleen Kennedy, so perhaps all involved will make an exception and allow Lucas to bring the curtain down on the Skywalker saga.
Then again, you’d be foolish to think that the so-far untitled Episode IX will go down as the final chapter. Nevertheless, here’s the original quote from George Lucas:
I think the sequels will be much, much better. What I want to do is direct the last sequel. I could do the first one and the last one and let everyone else do the ones in between.
A curious coincidence, don’t you think? One way or another, Episode IX is in need of a new director ahead of its release on May 24th, 2019. The Last Jedi, meanwhile, will swoop into theaters on December 15th of this year.