Director J.J. Abrams reacts to critics of The Rise of Skywalker

When it came to closing out the STAR WARS sequel trilogy, J.J. Abrams had a tough road to hoe. It wasn't just about bringing a nine film saga that's over four decades old to a satisfying conclusion. Abrams also faced the daunting task of reuniting a splintered fan base after Rian Johnson's THE LAST JEDI polarized audiences. STAR WARS fans everywhere finally got a chance to see THE RISE OF SKYWALKER this past weekend and while critics were mixed, people showed up in droves as the film had the third largest December opening in history. THE RISE OF SKYWALKER is undoubtedly on its way to a $1 billion bonanza on the big screen.

Despite the film's unquestionable financial success, THE RISE OF SKYWALKER has garnered a fair share of criticism. Many have derided the film's plot holes, poor pacing, focus on spectacle rather than story, and perceived retconning of THE LAST JEDI. Following a screening of the film at the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences at Hollywood, Abrams responded to the criticism in a Q & A session. When asked whether fans aren't getting something from the final film in the franchise, rather than get defensive, Abrams agreed saying, “No, I would say that they’re right. The people who love it more than anything are also right. We knew starting this that any decision we made — a design decision, a musical decision, a narrative decision — would please someone and infuriate someone else. And they’re all right.” Abrams also put to bed that there's any rancor between him and director Rian Johnson stating:

“It would be a much more interesting answer if there were conflict. The truth is when I was getting [The Force Awakens] up and running, I was nothing but grateful that a director and writer I admire as much as Rian was coming in to do [the next one.] Not expecting to come back to this, it was just fun to watch what was happening and get to respond to it."

Regardless of your feelings about THE RISE OF SKYWALKER (I personally liked it) there's a lot of truth to Abrams' words. Pleasing every STAR WARS fan is impossible. People get so wrapped up in their own head canon that if it doesn't match up with what's on the screen they are going to be disappointed. That's not to say that THE RISE OF SKYWALKER isn't deserving of criticism – it is. The final film proves that none of these new movies were talking to each other and that a singular overriding creative voice was sorely missing from this new trilogy. If Disney wants to learn from their mistakes and improve, that needs to change for the next trilogy, whatever and whenever that may be.