Frank Marshall says 'Star Wars' director search is winding down
They can't make the choice soon enough
Frank Marshall and Kathleen Kennedy have been one of the biggest power couples in the industry since the '80s, and her recent appointment as the president of Lucasfilm has only made them bigger.
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The announcement of who is directing "Star Wars Episode VII" cannot come quickly enough. At this point, I want it to happen because I can't believe I'm writing one news story a day about a movie that will not be in theaters until 2015.
Frank Marshall, husband to Kathleen Kennedy, who is now the president of Lucasfilm, was cornered by MTV.com and gave them precisely the sort of non-interview that is going to end up being widely reported in the absence of anything concrete. Marshall knows why, too. As he mentions to MTV, this is going to be perhaps the most hyped blockbuster film of all time, and for those of us who were doing this during the build-up to "The Phantom Menace," that is a slightly terrifying proposition.
According to Marshall, the hunt is down to "a couple of candidates," which seems right to me. As I said in the piece yesterday about reactions from Jon Favreau and JJ Abrams, I'm betting they are further along in this process than the press realizes. The announcement of the Disney/Lucasfilm deal caught everyone off-guard, and since that moment, we've been playing catch-up.
The timetable on this one is going to have to be fairly aggressive, and I would expect that not long after they've made the announcement about who is directing, they'll start giving us casting news quickly. As interested as I am about the returning cast like Mark Hamill or Carrie Fisher or Harrison Ford, I'm far more interested to see which new actors join the world, and how much Lucasfilm is willing to reveal about those characters and when.
It seems like StarWars.com is gearing up to be a more open and active place during the production of this one, but if anyone knows how to draw things out and get the maximum amount of hype out of the most innocuous statements, it is Lucasfilm, and just because Kathleen Kennedy is in charge, I don't think that's going to automatically mean that everything runs differently this time. It may be a matter of degrees, but when the mere mention of your film from a director or a producer not associated with it at all is enough to cause headlines everywhere, you don't have to push too hard to get publicity.
While Marshall isn't directly connected to "Star Wars," he would be involved if there was another "Indiana Jones" film, and his comments about that series seem to indicate that it's going to be a long time before we hear any news related to Dr. Jones. That's probably a good thing after "Crystal Skull," and Lucasfilm's focus has to be on getting "Star Wars" up and running for now.
"Star Wars Episode VII" will be in theaters in 2015.
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November 14, 2012 at 1:02AM EST Reply to CommentFavreau seems like an obvious and good choice - Iron Man felt like a big step for him, and since then his projects haven't quite connected in the same way, but it would be a good match of director and material. It will be interesting to see who they pick, whether obvious or more unexpected.
Also, as a side note, (and I may get roasted for this) the best course of action for Indiana Jones (other than leaving it alone) is to reboot it as a James Bond style franchise with an age appropriate cast (ie. mid 30s).
I still think Joseph Kosinski is a good choice. Any ideas who might be a candidate?
November 14, 2012 at 2:08AM ESTSerpico Jones Problem with that is there are rumors that Kosinksi was fired from Tron Legacy so I doubt Disney would go in that direction again.
November 14, 2012 at 2:40AM ESTdyikini
November 14, 2012 at 1:39AM EST Reply to CommentStar Wars Episode VII: A New Hope for fans.
That'll be why we're all going nuts Drew!
Please be good, please be good, please be good!
potty break
November 14, 2012 at 2:51AM EST Reply to CommentI have a feeling this movie is going to deliver. Maybe Lucas is tired of being hated.
Could it be Frank Marshall? He's a director. My guess would be Joe Johnston. No, Jon Favreau! No, Joe Johnston!
Mark
November 14, 2012 at 4:46AM EST Reply to Comment"That's probably a good thing after Crystal Skull."
The fanboy nerd world is a dispiriting place to visit. Crystal Skull was a pleasure to watch for me (apart from one or two artistic choices I couldn't run with, which totalled maybe 2 mins screentime out of a 120 min movie), it was great to see a master revisit the genre he created. The fanboy reaction to later Spielberg and Lucas pictures is just pathetic. The 'fans' don't seem to know anything about cinematic form these days.
Mark
November 14, 2012 at 4:46AM EST Reply to Comment"That's probably a good thing after Crystal Skull."
The fanboy nerd world is a dispiriting place to visit. Crystal Skull was a pleasure to watch for me (apart from one or two artistic choices I couldn't run with, which totalled maybe 2 mins screentime out of a 120 min movie), it was great to see a master revisit the genre he created. The fanboy reaction to later Spielberg and Lucas pictures is just pathetic. The 'fans' don't seem to know anything about cinematic form these days.
Eyes
November 14, 2012 at 7:47AM EST Reply to CommentWith Favreau you get a range of possibilities, from inoffensively mediocre to knocking it out of the park, the most likely outcome being somewhere in between. If they hire Abrams it will be clear that there's no intention at all of producing a movie that can live up to the hype.
Dennis
November 14, 2012 at 7:56AM EST Reply to CommentThey should definitely go with a relatively unknown director, and someone who has strong vision and the ability to not only create worlds but the make it seem tangible. That was the biggest problem with the prequels i think, even though i don't hate them so wholeheartedly as many others do. I still appreciate everything that Starwars is and hopefully will be. But you can't escape the fact that the prequels looked like video games, and the actors were just as stiff.
Speaking of which, you should check out the CG production studio "Blur studio" and see the intro cinematics they've done for the Old republic games. Now thats an amazing starwars film right there. Made by real fans, with all the right sensibility, and maybe leaning more towards R than PG.
I do belive the new film could put Star wars in a more darker territory story-wise but also reintroduce some of the humor from the old films.
filaphresh
November 14, 2012 at 9:08AM EST Reply to CommentIf they do Indy 5, I want it to be a prequel. I don't want to see any more about Shia LaBoeuf, the story was pretty well concluded, and they'll nearly be in the sixties (and Indy will be nearly in his 70s). We went from '30s serial to '50s B movie. If we try to keep going, we'll have Indy cracking down on those damn hippies.
But Indy prequels have a lot of potential. The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles ended around 1920. You could easily get several movies of the period between TYIJC and Temple of Doom: meeting Marian, developing his rivalry with Belloq, and most importantly, going on adventures in his studies with Abner Ravenwood.
ushaped
November 14, 2012 at 9:59AM EST Reply to CommentI hope it's a director who can get the character relationships and hopefully the emotional aspect of the story correct. Empire Strikes Back is the best film of the series because Kershner totally nailed it.
Dave I
November 14, 2012 at 11:18AM EST Reply to CommentAm I alone in not being too excited about this? I am not going nuts on this at all. I am not sure if it is because the prequels left me cold, or that the last Indiana Jones movie left me cold, or that the original Star Wars was decades ago, or if I have moved on, or maybe just because I have not actually seen anything yet. I liked Star Wars as much as the next guy, loved it as a kid, still really enjoy it as an adult. The new upcoming series? Bringing back the gang for a sequel thirty years later? Thus far, it is doing nothing for me.
This is all interesting, and I'm mildly curious to check it out and see how it is. That said, right now, there are much more exciting things happening in media. Movies, TV, much less books. Star Wars VII might be great. Until they make something special though I just cannot feel terribly excited about something that MIGHT be cool after the last three movies were largely underwhelming (although I really enjoyed Revenge of the Sith, it is not like that did not have some pretty big problems too).
While I hope it is great, for now I cannot say I feel anywhere near the same excitement some of you do.
-Cheers
FistOSalmon I'm going back and forth. I'd guess you're feeling like I did with Indy 4 (besides the fact it was horrible). They just waited too long and missed their shot so you're afraid you'll get something that just makes you feel embarrassed for the actors or they'll have to go so far in a different direction with it that it won't feel connected to the OT.
November 14, 2012 at 6:24PM ESTAnd yeah Sith was really good it just needed a few tweaks. If they'd spread it into two films it might have been more powerful, one movie is really not enough time to move a guy who's tempted all the way to the dark side.
Dave I Yeah, more or less like w/ Indy 4. I would say that pretty well captures it. It's just been too long and too much good will has already been spent. I feel almost 0 momentum for this and almost feel like Lucas has milked Star Wars for all its worth. Part of which I have to blame not just on the prequels, but also on how he tweaked the OT and it lost something along the way.
November 16, 2012 at 5:39PM ESTThat said, if it's good I'll gladly enjoy it. Kind of like Indiana Jones in that regard. I am just not getting my hopes up. Honestly, at this point my expectations are at Ground Zero.
-Cheers
FistOSalmon Too right. I know from when Episode 1 was coming out that I'll be jacked out of my brain as this new one gets close. At this point my best option seems to be crushing any optimism mercilessly so I be pleasantly surprised. It will be interesting to see how they handle this movie's production in the age of the full-blown internet. They've been relatively forthcoming after the initial announcement I wonder if they're following Peter Jackson's lead with video diaries et al. or if they'll go the Nolan route and clamp down on actual production and try to go viral and just react minimally to any leaks.
November 17, 2012 at 4:35PM ESTBen Kabak
November 14, 2012 at 11:50AM EST Reply to CommentWhy would anyone want Favreu? Have they not seen Cowboys and Aliens? Iron Man 2? There is a reason they booted him from Iron Man 3 and The Avengers.
FistOSalmon Jesus god almight thank you!!! I feel like I've been shouting at a wall since they announced this, Favreau is a hack. Well not a hack but pretty limited.
November 14, 2012 at 6:27PM ESTBlair
November 14, 2012 at 2:00PM EST Reply to CommentHaven't seen much talk about one of the most important collaborators returning. It wouldn't be Star Wars without John Williams...