Among the criticisms leveled against Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (of which there are quite a few), many felt that Episode IX outright ignored many of the themes and character development introduced in its predecessor, The Last Jedi.
Gone is the anonymity of Rey’s parents, the importance of Supreme Leader Snoke, and Rose Tico (save for 76 seconds of screentime), for a full-throttle blockbuster carefully designed to dot the Is and cross the Ts of this most beloved saga.
It’s an approach that has undoubtedly proved controversial, and while The Rise of Skywalker dismantles a number of major themes from The Last Jedi, Episode IX scribe Chris Terrio denied any feud involving Rian Johnson and J.J. Abrams, the latter of whom took charge of Lucasfilm’s curtain call after the departure of Colin Trevorrow.
Via THR:
Those people who see it as a meta-argument between J.J. and Rian are missing the point, I think. At the end of The Last Jedi, Luke has changed. I think it would be a bad misreading to think that that was somehow me and J.J. having an argument with Rian. It was more like we were in dialogue with Rian by using what Luke did at the beginning of The Last Jedi to now say that history will not repeat itself and all these characters have grown.
There’s something to be said about evolving characters as a franchise unfolds, but the real question mark is whether Lucasfilm’s Sequel Trilogy would’ve benefited from a concrete, pre-determined story a la Marvel Studios. It’s no secret that each of the three movies – namely The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker – entered development without a singular vision to guide them. And really, it shows. So much so that, by the time Episode IX rolls around, Abrams and Terrio are left to assemble all the loose story threads, often at the expense of continuity and, dare we say it, common sense.
Now at $725 million and climbing, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is on the verge of entering its third weekend on the market. Can it race past the billion-dollar mark? Time will tell.