Star Wars: J.J. Abrams Confirms He Consulted With George Lucas While Crafting ‘The Rise of Skywalker’

In the decades since the debut of Star Wars: A New Hope, George Lucas has made various claims about his initial plans for the saga. Various reports have noted that he had conceived of a nine-film series from the beginning, while other reports claim the overall storyline was nothing more than loose concepts. With only one film left in the sequel trilogy, fans who have heard rumors about Lucas’ “original” plans for the sequels can’t help but compare them to how the saga is actually unfolding, though director J.J. Abrams confirmed that he at least consulted with Lucas when he was developing Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

“There have been a lot of ideas since the beginning, since George first came up with this, of where things could go,” Abrams shared with MTV News. “We had a meeting with him before we even wrote the script about this. So a lot of what we have taken, is really taken to heart, everything that’s come before. While it’s been obviously significantly challenging, it’s been a greater opportunity than a challenge. I cannot wait for you to see what this movie is.”

Lucas sold Lucasfilm to Disney back in 2012 and has little involvement in the trajectory of the saga. While numerous reports have claimed that Lucas has been involved in the saga, the films have largely followed their own path, so it’s unclear how Lucas’ input may have impacted The Rise of Skywalker.

Abrams also noted that the upcoming film not only has to satisfy the sequel trilogy and the entire Skywalker Saga, but also function as its own story.

“I feel that the story we told, the goal for this movie, the job was to end not just this trilogy, and–just to make a standalone film, of course it needs to work in that way too,” the filmmaker admitted. “But to end nine films, three trilogies. So the job was to look at all of them, including [Star Wars: The Last Jedi], and ask ourselves, ‘What is the inevitability? Where is this going?’”

Fans will see how that story comes together when Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits theaters on December 20th.

What do you think about the filmmaker’s remarks? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

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