In sudden and unexpected news, Lucasfilm announced that it has parted ways with director Colin Trevorrow. Trevorrow will no longer be directingStar Wars Episode IX. A new director for the film has yet to be named.
Here is the full brief statement:
“Lucasfilm and Colin Trevorrow have mutually chosen to part ways onStar Wars: Episode IX. Colin has been a wonderful collaborator throughout the development process but we have all come to the conclusion that our visions for the project differ. We wish Colin the best and will be sharing more information about the film soon.”
Part of me wonders ifthe drama over the Han Solo standalone filmandthe extensive reshoots forRogue One: A Star Wars Storyprompted this decision. Both were initially helmed by relatively young directors; Trevorrow is also a newbie with just three movies under his belt, one of which wasJurassic World. The critical lambasting Trevorrow went through over his recent filmThe Book of Henryprobably didn’t help matters.
Since the originalStar Warstrilogy was predominantly the work of reliable journeymen directors,the hiring of Ron Howard to completeHan Solomight signal a change of direction when it comes to selecting franchise filmmakers. In other words, I expect some reliable veteran to be picked as the newEpisode IXdirector rather than a young independent filmmaker fresh from their first Sundance.
