The Star Wars franchise has been around for over four decades and continues to enjoy an iconic status in pop culture. However, despite grossing over $10 billion, the franchise has recently experienced a slump, especially due to the mixed reception of its recent entries, both on the big screen and streaming.
Meanwhile, director Matthew Vaughn, known for his work on the Kingsman franchise, has suggested a complete reboot of the Star Wars universe. Vaughn cited the Spider-Man series a template for his proposed reboot of the space opera franchise created by George Lucas. Here is what Vaughn had to say about the rebooting of Star Wars and why it makes sense.
Kingsman Director Matthew Vaughn Reveals His Condition to Make a Star Wars Movie
Director George Lucas launched Star Wars in 1977 with the self-titled first film (later retitled Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope), which was a major critical and commercial success. It later expanded into the Skywalker Saga, and other spin-off media, grossing over $10 billion at the global box office.
During an interview with Den of Geek, director Matthew Vaughn spoke about how he would take the franchise forward. The Kingsman director was initially in contention to direct Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but later dropped out.
If I was allowed to reboot Star Wars, and go back, put [Luke] Skywalker and Vader in it, and to start again. Everyone would think [I’m] crazy, but I’ve been arguing we’ve all done it with Spider-Man pretty well.
Vaughn made the above statement, explaining his idea to reimagine the Star Wars franchise. He stated that to him the story of Star Wars was the story of the Skywalker family. Vaughn cited Spider-Man and James Bond franchises as examples who have benefitted from reboots that have reimagined the characters for a modern audience.
Why Matthew Vaughn’s Plan Might Save the $10 Billion Star Wars Franchise
Despite its success at the box office, the Star Wars franchise has faced struggles in recent times, especially among critics and loyal fans. The sequel trilogy of films produced under Disney received mostly negative reviews from critics and also drastically polarized fans. As a result, the Skywalker saga had a lackluster conclusion.
Meanwhile, entries such as The Mandalorian reinvigorated interest in the wider Star Wars universe, but other television spin-offs weren’t received well by critics and fans. On the big screen, a film focused on fan-favorite character Han Solo emerged as a box office disappointment. The Obi-Wan Kenobi miniseries also received divisive reactions from fans.
While Disney has announced a string of feature films that will take the franchise beyond the Skywalker Saga, the poor reception of recent projects, especially ones focusing on some of its more popular legacy characters, has proven to be a cause of concern among the fans. Therefore, Vaughn’s idea of a reimagining of the original Star Wars trilogy could prove to be the right move to save the franchise.
The Star Wars films and television spin-offs are streaming on Disney+.
