A Trilogy of trilogies: StarWars: EPISODE 7, 8 & 9

[Kellie-Girl]

As I browse the web looking for nothing special, I came across this article. What do we think about another StarWars Trilogy? Should they leave well enough alone? Maybe try to regain a lost magic? Should George Lucus attempt to direct or pass the chair to some one else (Spielberg)? There are so many great post-empire stories that have been told in novel form (Dark Luke, Jedi academy, The Twins) that if done right, Starwars could be on top of the fantasy mountain once agian. Maybe I should wait till Ep. III comes out next summer b4 I get all doped up about it. Thoughts, comments concerns...

[Ryan McBain]

Great News

This is the article

How did this news go unnoticed for so long? The December issue of British entertainment magazine Hotdog has hit the stands in the U.S., and TheForce.net reports on this passage about Chewbacca actor Peter Mayhew:

"No wonder Peter 'Chewbacca' Mayhew is smiling. Not only has he been rescued from obscurity and given the chance to reprise his role as our Wookiee comrade for Episode III, but his contract also stipulates that he'd be required to appear in Episodes 7, 8, and 9."

It's long been known that George Lucas had at least six films in mind when he made the original three. It's taken him until now to pick up where he left off (or rather, where he began) and make the prequel trilogy. Lucas has also suggested in the past that he had ideas for a final three movies, making the Star Wars saga a grand trilogy of trilogies. More recently, however, the Flanneled One denies having considered any post-Return of the Jedi episodes.

The Mayhew contract suggests that, at the very least, Lucas is still keeping his options open, and would rather have Star Wars fans focused on the prequels for now.

It's not surprising that Mayhew's contract would be the one to stipulate further episodes. After all, Chewbacca is one of the only characters with enough longevity to appear in all nine films. If I'm not mistaken, Wookiees live several centuries. It would be interesting to know if Anthony Daniels (Threepio) or Kenny Baker (Artoo) have similar clauses in their contracts; unfortunately, they're not quite as loose-lipped in public as Mayhew is.

Time to start watching to see if Lucasfilm registers episode-vii.com?

I'm a huge star wars fan and I would love to see more movies....as long as Lucas never makes a move as bad as EP I ever again.

[AndySMC]

I really would get so excited over a new trilogy.
ANYONE other than Lucas directing the movies is better than Lucas himself.
There are heaps of stories/books the movies can be based on:
- The formation of the New Republic
- The formation of the New Jedi Order (see Jedi Knight games)
- The invasion of the Yu....somthing Vong; some freakish aliens that can repel the force
- The Jedi training of Anakin and Jaicen Solo
- The events in Timothy Zahn's excellent trilogy: Heir to the Empire, Dark something and The Last Command
and last of all:
- Chewbacca's death

[Modern Arts]

I heard that Spielberg begged Lucas to let him direct the prequels, but Lucas refused. Now I'm wishing he hadn't.

As for another trilogy (episode 7, 8, and 9), it's not happening- the rumor is left over from the days when Lucas was still developing the Star Wars universe and originally thought he'd need 9 movies to tell the whole story. It turned out 6 was enough and there have never been any actual plans for a sequel trilogy since. There wouldn't be any reason to, when you think about it, considering the many lines of Star Wars books have covered everything from thousands of years before A New Hope all the way to 30 years after, with some books either overlapping or taking place immediatley after the movies (The Courtship of Princess Leia, The Truce at Bakura). There's really no room for another significant story arc, and I really doubt they'd make movies out of any of the books.