Star Wars: The Last Jedi Director Rian Johnson Says He Was 'Hoping For' Fan Pushback, Rather Than Being 'Afraid of Doing Anything That Shakes It Up'

Rian Johnson, manager of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, has said helium anticipated and welcomed the movie's polarizing effect — and argued it would person been worse to make thing "afraid" of shaking up the franchise.

Speaking to Polygon, Johnson said Star Wars had a past of challenging instrumentality expectations of wherever the saga's communicative was headed ever since the series' 2nd release, Empire Strikes Back. With its daze quality deaths and caller uses of the Force, this is thing The Last Jedi surely besides did, portion generating a question of backlash from galore of the franchise's astir vocal online followers.

Despite this, Johnson said helium had intended to present a movie that "shook the box" and upended instrumentality expectations, alternatively than simply serving up thing that handled the franchise and its assemblage with "kid gloves" — thing different entries successful Disney's Star Wars sequel trilogy person besides been accused of.

"I was hoping for that — I wasn't acrophobic of it per se," Johnson said. "Having grown up a Star Wars fan, I cognize that happening wherever thing challenges it, and I cognize the recoil against that. I cognize however determination tin beryllium infighting successful the satellite of Star Wars. But I besides cognize that the worst misdeed is to grip it with kid gloves.

"The worst misdeed is to beryllium acrophobic of doing thing that shakes it up," helium continued. "Because each Star Wars movie going backmost to Empire and onward shook the container and rattled fans, and got them angry, and got them fighting, and got them talking astir it. And past for a batch of them, got them loving it and coming astir connected it eventually."

Johnson has said akin successful the past with respect to however the tastes of galore Star Wars fans person changed implicit clip — with galore present looking much fondly upon George Lucas' prequel movies, for example, which besides received important pushback upon their archetypal release. (Indeed, Johnson has antecedently said that his days "arguing connected the playground astir Star Wars" and having "ruthless" discussions astir The Phantom Menance helped him process The Last Jedi's online backlash.)

Johnson continued his comments connected The Last Jedi by equating its handling of Star Wars lore with however helium has attempted to cautiously grip the taxable of religion successful the upcoming Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery.

"People who are raised extracurricular of religion sometimes deliberation it's this touchy happening that you person to grip with kid gloves," helium said. "I grew up precise Christian. It was a precise idiosyncratic happening for me. I'm not a believer anymore. I'm nary longer a Christian. But erstwhile I was… You're perpetually rattling the container for yourself. You’re perpetually being offended by things. But past it's not similar that conscionable shuts disconnected [the existent satellite and however it challenges your beliefs].

"It’s conscionable similar being a Star Wars instrumentality and seeing a twist wherever you're like, ‘Oh God, that doesn't marque maine consciousness great, due to the fact that that's not what I expected,’” helium says. “As a Christian, the satellite is perpetually throwing that astatine you. It’s conscionable your regular life. Assimilating that is however you grow. That's portion of the intent of some [fandom and religion] — it’s lone live erstwhile it's interacting with the world."

With the upcoming motorboat of Johnson's 3rd Knives Out execution enigma film, the writer and manager has present near Star Wars behind, with nary existent plans for him to instrumentality and marque that MIA caller Star Wars movie trilogy that LucasFilm erstwhile announced.

Next twelvemonth volition spot the motorboat of The Mandalorian and Grogu, the archetypal caller Star Wars movie since 2019's unpopular Rise of Skywalker. A continuation of the deed Disney+ TV series, it volition spot the fan-favorite duo marque their theatrical debut successful what has been seen by fans arsenic a safer instrumentality to theaters for the franchise pursuing a agelong seven-year hiatus. Following that, Ryan Gosling volition prima successful the standalone Star Wars: Starfighter, owed successful 2027.

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You tin scope Tom astatine [email protected] oregon find him connected Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social