Colin Trevorrow Talks ‘Star Wars: Episode 9’ And Yes, He’s Aware Of That George Lucas Petition
The director ofStar Wars: Episode 9was never not going to be controversial. This is the most popular movie franchise in history we’re talking about here – little things raise tempers and lead to arguments arguments, so of course the person put in charge of an entire movie was going to create a tempest by default. However,the hiring ofJurassic WorlddirectorColin Trevorrowcertainly gave that tempest an extra jolt of nerd rage. Because he just directed one of the biggest movies of all time,everyonehas an opinion on him and they’re not afraid to share it.
Right now, Trevorrow is in a downright bizarre position: he’s working on a sequel to a sequelthat hasn’t even started filming yet. In other words, everyone is casting judgment on him for a movie that he literally cannot talk about except behind very specific closed doors, because the film he’s following up isn’t even due out until 2017. However, when cornered on red carpets at award ceremonies, he has to find something to say, which means that yes, Colin Trevorrow has officially chatted in public aboutStar Wars: Episode 9.
Entertainment Tonight caught up with Trevorrow at the Golden Globes two nights ago and squeezed him for information. And by squeezed, we mean “asked two softball questions and retrieved two vague but well-reasoned answers.” Here’s the full video of the interaction:
For those of you in a hurry, here’s what he had to say in glorioustext!
When asked ifEpisode 9will be different from the table-setting and origin-establishing ofStar Wars: The Force Awakens, Trevorrow promised that he’s already had the necessary conversations withEpisode 8directorRian Johnson:
A story must evolve or perish and Rian and I working closely together to make sure that our stories build off of each other and continue to evolve and take us to new places. That’s what the fans expect and what they want.
And then ET asked Trevorrow aboutthat ridiculous petitionto replace him withGeorge Lucas. We’ll give him this much – he managed to take what’s probably an irritating sore spot and spin it into a pretty good quote about making a movie that captures Lucas' spirit:
It was funny. I saw that. I think it was yesterday. It was on a day where I was at Lucasfilm giving this big speech to everyone about how we want to channel the invention and the raw creativity and the boldness that George brought to these films. That’s something that I’m so focused on and not being afraid that we’re going to embarrass ourselves by doing something that might be crazy. Because when George Lucas madeStar Wars, people thought it was crazy. But it’s the greatest story ever told.
And then there’s the fact that Lucas hasn’t been especially receptive to the new movies and he’s currently relaxing every single day on a bed made of money alongside his new wife and their young daughter. Why this petition wants to rouse him from what sounds like some kind of a paradise is beyond us. Trevorrow is directing this movie, guys. Let’s just accept this and move on.
I’m lukewarm onJurassic World, a movie that I think has its heart in the right place but can’t stick the landing. But I’m also not prepared to instantly write Trevorrow off, especially sinceKathleen Kennedyand the other folks atLucasfilmhave showcased such strong taste and judgment so far. In any case, I feel for the guy: this is the just the first of many slightly awkward interviews he’s in for over the next few years.
