When George Lucas sold Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012 for more than $4 billion, it marked a major turning point in the movie industry. But, as Lucas himself says, some game-changing transitions within the business were already in full swing.
In an interview with Brut (via Screen Rant), George Lucas said that selling Lucasfilm all came down to the rise of streaming. “Streaming is really powerful, and it’s great, it’s really upped the movie business because the theatrical movie business… we could see the problems, and it was not good. So everybody was looking to save it, but nobody knew streaming would. And that’s when Netflix took off, and at that point, I said, ‘I don’t know what this is gonna be, there’s gonna be a giant transition in the business, I don’t know that much about it,’ and I sold the company, and I retired.”
That retirement and purchase of Lucasfilm would allow The Walt Disney Company to do whatever it wanted with the Star Wars, something that would soon enough bite Lucas, who quickly realized that many of the ideas from his original films “got lost” and interpreted in ways that he never imagined or intended. Disney, too, would later inevitably venture into the streaming realm, launching Disney+ in late 2019. Disney+ serves as the main hub for a number of Star Wars projects, most notably The Mandalorian, Ahsoka and Andor, with series such as The Acolyte and Skeleton Crew slated for premieres this year.
Despite any issues Lucas has with what Disney has done with his galaxy, he is far, far away from entirely regretting selling Lucasfilm to the Mouse House. While he did call the experience a painful one, he knew that ultimately it was the right decision for himself and his family. As for the Star Wars saga itself, well, that’s up for debate…
There are currently a number of Star Wars films planned, including The Mandalorian & Grogu from Jon Favreau and movies from the likes of James Mangold, Rian Johnson, Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, and Dave Filoni.
How do you think Disney has done since acquiring Lucasfilm from George Lucas? Do you think Lucas should have hung around for a little while longer or was it the best choice for him and the franchise?