Kathleen Kennedy: “We know where we’re going, but only in the broadest sense.” “When Rian [Johnson] came in and started writing his script, he started from scratch, other than knowing what we had done in Episode VII and projecting out where it was going. He then sat down and put pen to paper, and it’s 100 percent him.” (August 12, 2015)
Kathleen Kennedy: “We haven’t mapped out every single detail yet [for the future episodes]. But obviously everybody’s talking to one other and working together […] that collaboration is going to guarantee that everybody’s got a say in how we move forward with this.” (December 7, 2015)
Kathleen Kennedy: “We already have [planted the seeds for future Star Wars episodes]. We’re three quarters of the way through the shooting of Rogue One, which will finish on the day this is released. And Rian started working on the script for Episode VIII a year and a half ago. So he’s been in prep for a year. And he starts shooting in January, the end of January. So we need to be working a couple of years out in front of, at least in terms of the script, in front of these start dates.” “No [J. J. Abrams didn’t do a treatment for future Star Wars episodes], because at that point we were sitting down and talking about where this might go, even as early on as with Michael Arndt. We were sort of plotting out, because obviously if you know up front that you’re building the pacing inside a trilogy structure, we needed to have some sense of where this saga was going without locking in on things and leaving room for creative development. But we had to have some sense of where we were going.” (December 17, 2015)
Kathleen Kennedy: “Yup [Rian Johnson came in and gave notes while The Force Awakens was in development.]” “Yes. We talked a little bit about [setting up plot points for VIII and seeding things], but we didn’t end up doing a great deal of that — but we did talk about that. And Rian did come in very early and he read, and came and visited the set. J.J. and him had a lot of conversations. I think Colin will end up doing more of that more-so with Rian as he develops Episode IX.” (December 17, 2015)
J. J. Abrams: “It’s a thrill to see [Rian Johnson] take things and elevate them beyond what we had imagined at the time.” “I’m still editing and we’re working on refining the cut, but it’s incredibly fun to see the movie come together. You go through, and you realize certain things that you don’t need, certain things that you can pull out.” “I will let you know when we get there [to completion].” (August 12, 2015)
J. J. Abrams: “I can’t imagine how many fans have told their own versions of these stories. We were constantly saying ‘Oh, this could be great for VIII’ or ‘This would be so much fun to do now but we have to wait until IX for that’. We talked a lot about what might have happened.” (Empire magazine – October 2015)
J. J. Abrams: “I do feel like there’s a little bit more of a burden on Larry and me to come up with a story that could at least be the beginning of what transpires over three films.” “Yes [a TV pilot is like the first movie in a new cycle of movies], although in fairness a pilot obviously doesn’t require a finale that gives you a sense of satisfaction, because you’re telling the audience to tune in next week. With a movie, you have to give at least some kind of satisfying conclusion.” (November 2015)
J. J. Abrams: “The script for VIII is written. I’m sure rewrites are going to be endless, like they always are. But what Larry and I did was set up certain key relationships, certain key questions, conflicts. And we knew where certain things were going. We had meetings with Rian and Ram Bergman, the producer of VIII. They were watching dailies when we were shooting our movie. We wanted them to be part of the process, to make the transition to their film as seamless as possible. I showed Rian an early cut of the movie, because I knew he was doing his rewrite and prepping. And as executive producer of VIII, I need that movie to be really good. Withholding serves no one and certainly not the fans. So we’ve been as transparent as possible. Rian has asked for a couple of things here and there that he needs for his story. He is an incredibly accomplished filmmaker and an incredibly strong writer. So the story he told took what we were doing and went in the direction that he felt was best but that is very much in line with what we were thinking as well. But you’re right—that will be his movie; he’s going to do it in the way he sees fit. He’s neither asking for nor does he need me to oversee the process.” (November 2015)
J. J. Abrams: “We didn’t write a treatment [for the next episodes] but there are countless times we came up with something and said ‘oh, this would be so great for Episode VIII!’ or ‘That’s what we could get to in IX!’ It was just that kind of forward moving story. But we knew this had to neither be a backwards moving nostalgic trip only nor a beginning of a movie without a satisfying conclusion, and that was part of the balancing act — embracing what we have inherited and using that where and whenever possible to tell a story that hasn’t been seen yet. We also knew that certain things were inevitable in our minds but that didn’t mean it would be inevitable for whoever came in next. When Rian [Johnson], who I admire enormously and adore, came on board, we met and talked with him about all the things we were working on and playing with, and he as a spectacular writer and director has taken those things and has written an amazing script that I think will be an incredible next chapter, some of which incorporating things we were thinking of and other things are things we could never of dreamed of.” “There were a handful of things we talked about that were going to be helpful to him. Some were very easy to do, and some things were things that I didn’t want to do for other reasons, but I tried to be as accommodating as I could. And its so cool to see what happens next in a way that only someone as talented as Rian could do.” (December 15, 2015)
J. J. Abrams: “We were definitely, we had a movie that was gonna go into production, we had a movie that we had to write and so we kept having ideas [where] we thought, ‘this would be a really great thing to do in VIII,’ or ‘that could be really cool’ or ‘this is where this could go in IX.’ And we’d sort of sketch out on the periphery these ideas knowing our job was not to outline VIII and IX. Our job was to write VII. So we had very specific ideas but we spent our focus, our time that we had on obviously writing the script that we were going to be shooting. And then when [Rian] Johnson was brought on board we talked to him about all the ideas that we had and all the things we were working on and he pitched ideas [of] where he was taking the story in some places that were very much in line with what we were thinking and in other places going and telling a story that was very different from what we were thinking but was incredibly exciting to see where he was going. And it was…he’s so great. So it wasn’t like we were dealing with someone who needed our help but it was great to see the way he took what we had started and where he’s gone and I think it’s going to be pretty exciting.” (December 17, 2015)
J. J. Abrams: “There were things that we – at the very beginning of the process – were outlining and discovering and we just knew would be in ‘Episode 8’ or ‘9’. A couple of those were things I was so excited about getting to do, but realised early on that there was no way we could shove them into ‘Episode 7’. Then of course Rian Johnson came along and is incorporating some of these things very closely to what we were thinking about – and in other cases things that we would never have imagined.” “The ideas that we had about what preceded and what might follow [‘The Force Awakens’] were fairly enormous. We had to talk quite a bit about how we got here, about where we might go. That’s what ‘Episode 4’, the first ‘Star Wars’ movie did so brilliantly. It felt like it had this lived in world that excited and was going somewhere extraordinary.” (December 18, 2015)
J. J. Abrams: “Well, when Lawrence Kasdan and I were working on the story, we had a sense of where we thought things would go. So of course there a number of things we use and set up. And it’s wonderful to see how Rian Johnson has taken our story. Of course we had meetings and stuff beforehand, but he’s taken it and really made it his own and continued the story his way. But there are, of course, many things in this film that are very clearly part of a continuum.” (SFX magazine January 2016)
J. J. Abrams: “Larry and I had a bunch of thoughts of where certain things could go and we shared those things with Rian Johnson, who’s directing VIII. He had things that he came up with where he asked if it was possible if we could make some adjustments with what we were doing at the end, most of which we did — there were just a couple that didn’t feel right, so he made adjustments — but it was just collaboration. We’re all fans and friends and supporters of each other, and there’s been no one cheerleading and supporting louder and more consistently than Rian on this, and I feel that I am grateful that I now get to take that position for him.” (January 8, 2016)
J. J. Abrams: “I know quite a bit [about Rey’s lineage].” “Obviously it’s not for me to talk about in this moment because this is Rian’s story to continue now. The last thing I’m going to do is reveal something that he would be upset about. I want to make sure that Rian gets the courtesy that he showed me.” (January 12, 2016)
J. J. Abrams: “[The Force Awakens] was a bridge and a kind of reminder; the audience needed to be reminded what Star Wars is, but it needed to be established with something familiar, with a sense of where we are going to new lands, which is very much what 8 and 9 do.” (April 15, 2016)
Lawrence Kasdan: “We asked ourselves what might have happened to [the original trilogy cast] during that time? How much had they changed? We wanted new characters who will be interesting to you not just for one movie, but for three. Who have the potential to fit into this galaxy and yet be something different than we’ve ever seen. We’ve been very lucky with the casting there because those are three extraordinary actors. And then there’s Adam Driver… He’ll be different from anything that’s ever been in Star Wars.” (Empire magazine October 2015)
Lawrence Kasdan: “We didn’t [plan the next episodes]. We should have, but we didn’t.” “What we thought was it was a big enough job to wind up with something we really like.” “It fulfilled those desires to get back to a certain spirit.” “Nothing is settled at the end of this movie, so that suggests ‘Episode VIII’ and ‘IX.’ But we did not say we had to lay that out. That’s someone else’s job.” “[Director] JJ Abrams and [Producer Kathleen Kennedy], they were very cognizant of that link. They wanted whatever I could help to give them.” “JJ is amazingly open and receptive. He loves the first trilogy and this link to the first trilogy was a good thing for him.” “It was very comfortable to write about characters who learn the same thing I did, which is the world is complicated.” (December 16, 2015)
Lawrence Kasdan: (31:31) “We’re hoping, you know, that Rian Johnson can figure [Rey’s backstory and the state of the galaxy] out.” [audience laughter] “We were really stymied.” (December 20, 2015)
Lawrence Kasdan: “Well you want [the movie] to be open-ended. We definitely wanted it to be open-ended but we didn’t want to dictate where it was going. These movies – and people underestimate this but all six of these movies that preceded this – now the seventh – are determined by the directors who do them, so A New Hope has George’s buoyancy, his feeling that there would never be another Star Wars, he has his rebellion against Hollywood and his love for those things, the pulp and the Flash Gordon and the Kurosawa – everything that had influenced him up to then. And then when he miraculously was enabled with his own money to make The Empire Strikes Back he made the most important decision ever in all the saga I think when said my teacher from the USC Irvin Kershner who had never done anything like A New Hope but had made New York art films […] these were art films from the east coast and George brilliantly said that’s the flavor that I want for The Empire Strikes Back. And it changed everything – not just the revelation of Darth [Vader] being the father but the tone of everything changed from then on. And that’s when I came into it and I thought this is so much more interesting – and I love A New Hope – but this makes it more than A New Hope. So, each director defines the movie and Rian Johnson who will do the next episode will change it enormously.” (December 21, 2015)
Lawrence Kasdan: “[J .J. Abrams and I have] not really [sketched out the next episodes]. [The Force Awakens] sets up a lot of stuff. There’s a lot of people to deal with. And Rian took on that job and he’s going to change it, because he’s Rian. And I’m sure Colin will change what Rian does…. These movies will all be so different. Rian Johnson is a friend of mine — he’s going to make some weird thing. If you’ve seen Rian’s work, you know it’s not going be like anything that’s ever been in Star Wars.” “We talked about [the ending of the new trilogy] — and there’s a certain thing that people who are involved with it feel should happen. There’s a kind of movement that happens. But it’s not in your control. It’s going to veer off with Rian, and it’s going to veer off another way with Colin.” (December 22, 2015)
Michael Arndt: (31:31) [audience laughter] “We were just, ‘Screw it. Let Rian figure [Rey’s backstory and the state of the galaxy] out.’ Yeah.” (December 20, 2015)
Rian Johnson: “For me, personally, I grew up not just watching those movies but playing with those toys. So growing up, the first movies I was making in my head were set in [the Star Wars] world.” “Honestly, [writing Episode VIII]’s the most fun I’ve ever had writing, it’s just joyous.” “[Kathleen Kennedy] and her whole creative team have been so insistent on all the filmmakers they’ve been hiring for these new movies. [They say,] ‘We want you to take it, and turn it into something that you really care about’. “We’ll see how the process plays out, but so far, that’s a big part of the reason I’m in it, because that just seems like their attitude towards it. It’s really exciting, actually.” (September 20, 2014)
Rian Johnson: “I did [start Episode VIII while VII was in production], yeah. They were still shooting actually here in London. They were still shooting Episode VII and so, yeah, I was still thinking about that today because obviously Colin [Trevorrow] is doing the same thing while we were in production with Episode VIII. He was starting to think about IX. And I know it was kind of strange like because we – one of the first things I did was went up to San Francisco and spent about six weeks kind of figuring out the story and I would go in a few times a week and sit down with these guys [Kathleen Kennedy, Kiri Hart, and Pablo Hidalgo] and with the [Lucasfilm] Story Group and just hash it through. We would watch dailies that were coming in from VII and at that point it was just the script and kind of the dailies that we were seeing. I was thinking about that – it was probably really healthy that in thinking about where the story goes next, it was entirely just based on our reactions to it as opposed to based on the phenomenon that it would become or the cultural reaction to it. It was just a very personal, ‘what do we connect with about with these characters and where do they go next?'” (Star Wars Celebration 2016 London)
Rian Johnson: “I was constantly evolving [Episode VIII] as 7 came together.” (August 13, 2016)
Rian Johnson: “What has been so wonderful about Kathy is there was a real creative freedom from the start. She gave me a script for The Force Awakens and then sat down and said, ‘So what happens next?’ That was the last thing I was expecting.” (December 12, 2016)
Rian Johnson: “Yes … The big [favor] was, I asked [J.J. Abrams] if R2 could come with Rey, and if BB-8 could stay behind with the Resistance. Originally it was BB-8 who went with Rey, which makes sense for the story in a way. But I asked, ‘Can you do me this solid and switch the droids?’” “Figuring out where [Luke’s] head was at was the very first thing I had to do when writing the movie. I had to crack this. And it had to be something for me that first and foremost made sense. Why did Luke Skywalker go off to this island? That was the starting point, and that’s what the entire movie explores.” “I didn’t want it to [be that Luke is a coward]. There has to be a good reason that makes sense to him — and to some degree makes sense to us.” (May 4, 2017)
Rian Johnson: "Nope [the story for TLJ was not pre-planned]." (May 28, 2017) "I’m sure they talked about where it might go early on, but when they came to me there was no mapped story presented beyond TFA." (May 28, 2017)
Colin Trevorrow: “A story must evolve or perish, and Rian [Johnson] and I are working closely together to make sure our stories build off of each other and continue to evolve and take us to new places, and I think that’s what the fans expect and what they want.” (January 11, 2016)
Ja, so kann ich mir das vorstellen.
Was im folgenden zu vollkommener Funkstille seitens der Storygroup führte.
Das Drehbuch wurde von vielen gelobt und von einigen verteufelt, Adam Driver, J. J. Abrams und Kennedy haben das Drehbuch gelobt, Mark Hamill und Daisy Ridley scheinen dem nicht ganz zugestimmt zu haben und Carrie Fisher hat vermutlich gemerkt: Der braucht ein bisschen kreative Kritik, damit er richtig arbeiten kann. Und hat sich dann mit ihm hingesetzt und mit ihm geredet damit er den Input bekommt den er von der Storygroup nicht gekriegt hat, weil die ihm keine Vorschriften machten außer der Tatsache das seine Geschichte perfekt in den Kanon zu passen scheint.
