The biggest news story of last week is that Disney bought Lucasfilms for $4.05 billion dollars. Lucasfilms is George Lucas’ production company, which is behind the Star Wars franchise. Along with the deal, Disney announced plans to make a seventh Star Wars movie to be released in 2015, and an eighth and ninth installment after that. Disney has also officially decreed Princess Leia as a “Disney Princess.” LHS students have weighed in with their opinions on the announcement.
Senior Noah LeGrand is optimistic for the future of Star Wars and hopes for an improvement from the prequel films, which he finds disappointing.
“I think it’s good that Lucas is passing the torch to a new generation,” he said.
Other students, such as Seniors Corey Mendez and John Grana, see the deal as a ploy to make more money.
“I expect to see Jar Jar Binks everywhere,” Mendez said.
“All artistic integrity is out the window,” Grana said.
George Lucas has notoriously been concerned with making large quantities of money from his movies. He allowed toy companies to mass produce action figures and Legos in the likeness of Star Wars characters, and made story decisions in the films to ensure high toy sales. For example, Harrison Ford, who portrayed Han Solo in the original trilogy, insisted that Han must die onscreen at the end of The Return of the Jedi to give an otherwise flat character more emotional weight. Lucas refused, because he believed if Han Solo died then less toys would be sold. In addition, Lucas created characters like Jar Jar Binks, who have little importance to the story and many believe are around solely for comic relief and to appeal to children.
The addition of Princess Leia to the mix of Disney Princesses adds a new dynamic to the mostly docile array of princesses.
“Leia is the toughest Disney Princess now,” junior Alex Adley said.
Although in the past, George Lucas has made decisions which were obviously intended to make more money for himself, he has insisted that he sold his company to Disney with the intention of letting a new young generation of filmmakers take over the reins of his legendary saga, and turn his focus to more philanthropic concerns.
“For 41 years, the majority of my time and money has been put into the company. As I start a new chapter in my life, it is gratifying that I have the opportunity to devote more time and resources to philanthropy,” Lucas said in a statement a few days ago.
Lucas announced that he will donate the entire $4.05 billion that he receives from Disney to charities benefitting education. This is a selfless deed which shows that Lucas may not be only concerned with money, and actually has benevolent intentions.
