Denis Villeneuve feels the Star Wars franchise derailed in 1983

Disney and Lucasfilm have been attached a lot of filmmakers to various Star Wars projects. Dave Filoni, Jon Favreau, James Mangold, Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, Kevin Feige, Patty Jenkins, Donald Glover, Taika Waititi, Rian Johnson, Shawn Levy – they’re all either currently working on something that’s set in the Star Wars universe, or have worked on projects that aren’t moving forward. But one filmmaker we shouldn’t expect to see stepping into the Star Wars franchise is Denis Villeneuve, director of Blade Runner 2049 and the recent Dune movies. That’s because Villeneuve feels the series derailed way back in 1983, with the release of Return of the Jedi.

During an interview on The Town podcast, Villeneuve said (as reported by The Hollywood Reporter), “I was the target audience (for the original Star Wars film). I was 10 years old. It went to my brain like a silver bullet. I became obsessed with Star Wars. I mean, The Empire Strikes Back is the movie that I anticipated the most in my life. I saw the movie a billion times onscreen. I was traumatized by The Empire Strikes Back. I adore Star Wars. The problem is that it all derailed in 1983 with Return of the Jedi. It’s a long story. I was 15 years old, and my best friend and I wanted to take a cab and go to L.A. and talk to George Lucas — we were so angry! Still today, the Ewoks. It turned out to be a comedy for kids. … Star Wars became crystallized in its own mythology, very dogmatic, it seemed like a recipe, no more surprises. So I’m not dreaming to do a Star Wars because it feels like code is very codified.“

As for where he stands on Star Trek, the director simply said, “I’m not a Trekkie.“

Villeneuve may not have any Star Wars or Star Trek in his future, but he will be making more Dune. He’s working on the script for the third film in that franchise, Dune Messiah, based on a novel by Dune creator Frank Herbert. The novel Dune Messiah has the following description: Dune Messiah continues the story of Paul Atreides, better known-and feared-as the man christened Muad’Dib. As Emperor of the Known Universe, he possesses more power than a single man was ever meant to wield. Worshipped as a religious icon by the fanatical Fremens, Paul faces the enmity of the political houses he displaced when he assumed the throne-and a conspiracy conducted within his own sphere of influence. And even as House Atreides begins to crumble around him from the machinations of his enemies, the true threat to Paul comes to his lover, Chani, and the unborn heir to his family’s dynasty.

Here’s hoping fans of his Dune movies will have a more positive reaction to Dune Messiah than he had to Return of the Jedi.

Do you share Denis Villeneuve’s opinion on Star Wars and Return of the Jedi? Let us know by leaving a comment below.