ST Official Sequel Trilogy / Legends / Expanded Universe discussion thread

Yeah but at a point people are gonna start freaking out trying to fit "Episode XVIII" onto a poster logo. Won't someone please think of the logo designers?

 

Don't you mean LXXXVIII

 

Lucas is pretty savvy. I'm sure he would have been specific enough in his contract to avoid loopholes. But Disney won't want high episode numbers anyway. As with most long running franchises, people refer to Bond movies by the number until the title is released, but Bond movies have never had a number in the title itself, and that's what we're talking about here. I'd be curious to know what the highest number in an actual film title is, but I'm sure it's something fairly schlocky, which the impression that high sequel numbers in the title are perceived to give a movie.

 

Any contract has loopholes if you're lawyer is paid enough. But that's not really the point of thi discussion.

To answer your question, the highest number in a movie title that I can find (of a non-adult, North American origin) is the Land Before Time which goes up to XIII.

That said, in Europe or Japan there are several series that go up in to the 20s and 30s with numbers.

But even in longer series that exist it is a rarity.


Personally, I would prefer it stay, simply because it is something that makes Star Wars a bit more unique, and is a tribute the the origins. Similarly, I think financially it makes the most sense for Disney. But I have no real evidence either way other than speculation.


Fun fact - the longest 'series' of films are ones about Wong Fei-hung, a Chinese folk hero. There are (I'm spelling this so no one thinks its a typo) EIGHTY NINE!!

(note that there are several adult novel series with over 300 books in them for comparison)

 

I think whether or not Disney will continue making numbered episodes after IX entirely depends on the popularity of the spinoffs and the sequels. If Dark Times spinoffs are more profitable than episodes, then Disney has no reason to continue the episodes. And considering that they'll certainly be using cashcow characters like Boba Fett or Vader in the spinoffs, this is entirely possible.

 

Interesting Tweet, about what Disney is expecting.

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   Marc Graser ‏@marcgraser
   32m​
   Disney expects a Star Wars related movie (including spin offs) every year from Lucasfilm. #StarWars
   
   from Los Angeles, CA
   
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   Marc Graser ‏@marcgraser
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   Disney expects to get script for Star Wars 7 in January. No budget for movie although studio wouldn't be surprised if it costs $200 million.
   
   from Los Angeles, CA
   
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   Marc Graser ‏@marcgraser
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   Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn is speaking at Variety's Dealmakers Breakfast.

 

that was what he shared with Variety. Script, is basically done, they think the budget will be around 200 million, and they want a new Star Wars movie every year from Lucasfilm.

 

Every year? I know we heard that before, but I'm a little surprised they're sticking with that immediately. Doable, but ambitious. Might be taking a risk on quality though IMHO. While some of the marvel movies have been great in the current cinematic universe (and all have done well at the box office so far, no argument), some really haven't been very good.

That kind of goal might actually benefit from keeping the EU because there's more existing source material that can be converted (like the extant marvel comics) into scripts in a shorter time, rather than developing all new ideas that might not be as well plotted. (not to say we should be getting Glove of Darth Vader the movie or anything)

 

"Script being almost done" is what they told us months ago. I wonder how long they'll continue repeating this claim.

 

Good point

 

"It is too much. Too much money to begin the filming."

 

I seriously doubt there'll be further delays. Disney wouldn't allow it, and Kasdan/Abrams specifically took over the script in order to get it up to speed within the newly agreed to timeframe. These guys aren't amateurs.

 

Hey as long as they don't rush it and make a bad movie

 

Well until they fix the script motivator its impossible to go into production.

 

I don't remember them ever saying the script was almost done before, much less given a time frame for its completion.

 

I'll make it fit!

 

Pablo tweets on canon staus oft TFU, Rebels, and TCW

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   Cad Bane ‏@A_Targaryen
   14h​
   @infinata is the start of the Rebel Alliance from TFU considered canon with the Rebels storyline? Or is TFU not canon at all?
   
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   Pablo Hidalgo ‏@infinata
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   @A_Targaryen no. The TFU version isn't canon. The season 5 Clone Wars stuff is.

 

Interesting that TFU isn't considered part of "canon" as defined by Pablo/LFL. Though hardly surprising given that Pablo refers to G Canon a "Canon" and C Canon as "EU". So technically this doesn't change anything in and of itself for the EU as a whole.

What DOES surprise me is that I was under the impression that Lucas was fairly involved in developing the TFU storyline as part of 'his' universe (ie canon) rather than it being part of the EU.

Also, what precisely does anything in Season 5 of TCW have anything to do with the formation of the Rebellion?

 

The Onderon arc.

 

Pablo has specifically said that the only things that are canon now are Episodes 1-6 and TCW. Lucas has been involved with a number of EU creations which are not considered canon, so I wouldn't have expected anything different for TFU.

 

And the point is that going forward, the only immutable "facts" that will be respected from the pre-Disney days will be those from episodes I-VI and TCW. Everything else is subject to change.

 

Okaaaayyyy.....Correct me if I'm missing something, but this was about training a local resistance, to overthrow the separatists, and put a pro-Republic monarch back on the throne.

How does that relate to the rebellion?

I'm not going to go through Pablos extensive twitter feed, but yes, Ep I-VI and TCW are the "canon" core of the franchise. But in the way that he uses "canon" that's been the case since the EU started.

However, he has also stated that how the EU fits within canon (whether it is still extant but subordinate like before, or an alternate universe, or apocraphyl) has not yet been decided. Which really isn't helpful at all.

The problem is Pablo uses "canon" to describe films/TCW only, and EU for everything else, but Leland has mostly used the G-T-C-S-N "Canon" levels for things, so its two different definitions of Canon.

 

Leland and Pablo also said on ForceCast that the canon levels are widely misinterpreted because their primary purpose is an organizational one for writers to be able to more easily find various entries in the Holocron.

 

I'm....not really sure what that means since the definitions of each level were put out by LFL and don't really change (so far as I'm aware) regardless of purpose. Or really what it changes either way.

One of these days I'll start listening to podcasts.

But OK, going with that "canon" was only ever supposed to involve the movies (and later TCW) and the EU is everything else. (which doesn't address the canonicity of the EU):



But to snag the Tweets from Pablo I was thinking of (From Nov 29 at 4:25pm):
5h
@starsymbiotes I can say that in the past, if it was intended for the screen and developed by George Lucas, it was canon.

@starsymbiotes and then everything else was EU. Stuff that might be true. Might also not be.

@starsymbiotes in the future... We're working on it.


So his new tweet to say TFU isn't Canon then doesn't actually tell us anything. No change to what "canon" is by this definition (just my mistake thinking TFU might count due to involvement), but also doesn't tell us anything about where the EU stands either.

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