Author Topic: Disney Acquires Lucasfilm (Read 552 times)

JediMCor · « **on:** October 30, 2012, 02:47:56 PM »

Just read from our Starwars Friends from Yakface.com that Disney is Acquiring Lucasfilm for $4 Billion.

http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20121030006384/en/Disney-Acquire-Lucasfilm-Ltd.

What a surprize for me. I know George Lucas wanted to retire, I just didn't know he was selling it.
Maybe Disney will be a good thing for Starwars. What does everybody else think?? Maybe Disney can do more Starwars attractions at their parks.

Hand So Low · « **Reply #1 on:** October 30, 2012, 03:47:58 PM »

The article says they are aiming for a 2015 release of episode VII. I will crap everywhere if that happens.

Lord-Penter · « **Reply #2 on:** October 30, 2012, 05:19:42 PM »

Let just hope they do it right & continue with greatest story ever told.

pshorrock72 · « **Reply #3 on:** October 30, 2012, 05:51:48 PM »

I am all for change - it cannot get any worse that how we were headed.

Lord-Penter · « **Reply #4 on:** October 30, 2012, 06:48:31 PM »

Ironic this story has pushed all others including storm off from main topics?

Why is Disney calling in Episode 7 & not VII?

Hand So Low · « **Reply #5 on:** October 30, 2012, 07:12:23 PM »

That may just be the guy who wrote the article or maybe he's dumbing it down for the people who don't know star wars. Im on board with disney taking over. Im sure the new trilogy will be over the top, but it can't be any worse than the prequels (which I liked, but not like the OT).

Jedimom · « **Reply #6 on:** October 30, 2012, 07:16:27 PM »

I'm still in shock. But I always figured if he sold it, it would be to Disney since he has so much in place with them anyways. But I figured one or 2 of his kids may take over

Bloodant · « **Reply #7 on:** October 30, 2012, 08:15:40 PM »

Episode 7 Attack of the Mickey's.

Opening scene, a bunch of pissed off family members, of slain contract workers earning a living, are rioting against the rebel alliance for an unprovoked attack on the death star killing 1000's of innocents as the death star exploded.

So many possible stories can be made, and made as good as the Marvel movies that have recently came out. Such good news.

Darth Spice · « **Reply #8 on:** October 30, 2012, 10:11:10 PM »

As much as I've wanted to see the story continue past RotJ as a kid, I've got a baaaaaaaad feeling about this... Only time will tell guys, but something tells me Celebration probably ain't leaving Orlando anytime soon!

Lord-Penter · « **Reply #9 on:** October 31, 2012, 04:05:46 AM »

Has this decision killed the live TV show that was shelved because of cost?
Will it be with human actors? or all CGI like most Pixar/Disney films & will it be rated G?
I am going to just wait for 1st trailer before passing judgement?
With this announcement? Am I the only 1 who thinks the end is near & Cubs will win a World Series?
I just hope it is NOT Jedi Mickey? & Darth Duck? & a story for Disney Chars?

Slobba_the_Hutt · « **Reply #10 on:** October 31, 2012, 04:13:31 AM »

I have no idea what to think about this

in order to have progress there must be change, but that does not imply that just because something changes that it will be changing for the better

I couldn't sleep and now I'm afraid I may never sleep again!

Hand So Low · « **Reply #11 on:** October 31, 2012, 07:33:57 AM »

Here's my take: I feel this is a good thing for Star Wars fans everywhere.

1) Like I said above, I like the prequels. Although it took a few times watching them to appreciate them. I also had to read the books to get some of the back story (for all who dismiss Phantom Menace, read the book. It makes the movie much much better). So, even though I'm a fan, I don't feel they were as good as the could have been. Lucas was balls deep in the prequels. Part of what makes Empire so good and Jedi good is that Lucas didn't direct those movies or write those screenplays. Still his stories, someone else's vision.

2) Disney has a damn good track record with other licenses. They bought Marvel, and those movies, while not for everyone, are still good movies. They are taking great care with the Muppets and staying true to Jim Henson's "brand". The Pirates movies, although not my cup of tea, have fans just as crazy as we are. Almost every Pixar movie wins awards because they are good movies. The Tron re-boot is actually not terrible.

3) Look how much freaking Disney toys and merchandise is out there. If there is one thing Disney loves, it's money. I don't see us having any problem getting SW toys or collectibles anymore. I think Disney is going to go into Hasbro and say "Get that product out there". And if Hasbro can't do it, Disney will find another manufacturer who can. Remember when Tron came out? The stores were overflowing with figures and light cycles. I still see them in the clearance aisles.

4) NEW STAR WARS MOVIE(s)!!!! And episode VII (and VIII and IX hopefully)! Lucas said he was never going to make these movies. My question has always been "Why not?". Give the fans what they want. And we want more Star Wars. Every one of you will go see these movies. Like Penter said, we've been waiting for episode VII since 1983. For whatever reason, Lucas said no. No one asked for the prequels. And to be honest, he made the most feared villain in a galaxy into a whiny b*tch. Mark Hamill has said he's reprise the Luke Skywalker role. I'd love the chance to see Mark Hamill as a full fledged Jedi master.

Lt. Starfox · « **Reply #12 on:** October 31, 2012, 07:49:55 AM »

C'mon guys, this is exciting news for everyone. We all want SW to continue....how many books or comics have we read? a bunch and any of these story lines would be great. My biggest question is where will they be taking this? Will it start off with the Thrawn trilogy? One article states that it will follow Luke, Leia & Han...but when? and who will play these parts?

The franchise is in good hands, let's hope they do it justice.

Hand So Low · « **Reply #13 on:** October 31, 2012, 08:39:57 AM »

Found this on Huffington Post:

Quote

So, there's going to be a Star Wars: Episode VII (and VIII and IX) after all. For years, George Lucas had sworn that 2005's Revenge of the Sith would be the last film produced for the saga. If there's one thing that us Star Wars fans know, however, it's that, when it comes to Star Wars, George Lucas' word should be taken with a ... hold on, I'm looking for something smaller than a "grain of salt" ... powder residue of flour. Back in the '70s, the original plan was to make either nine or 12 Star Wars films, depending on what day Lucas was asked. The fact that he's changed his mind by selling Lucasfilm to Disney is not particularly surprising, but the real question is: Where does the story go from here?

First, keep in mind: The last time a Star Wars film was not written and directed by George Lucas was Return of the Jedi. Before that, The Empire Strikes Back. People still love those two movies -- especially Empire -- so the prospect of a new writer and director is, at the very least, interesting. But, if you were writing a sequel to Return of the Jedi, where would you go with the story? Not getting too wonky, but there are really only three options.

Oh, we should discuss those options? Sorry, I just assumed that you knew them already because I sometimes assume everyone likes Star Wars as much as I do. OK, let's do that.

1.) Cast the actors from the original trilogy.

This is the least likely of the three options, so let's get this out of the way. Look, I'm not saying that Anthony Daniels won't be back as C-3PO because, in reality, that will probably happen. But the chances that we will see Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher in their original roles are even more remote than even Dantooine. Harrison Ford didn't even want to be in Return of the Jedi and has mentioned repeatedly that he's done with the character of Han Solo (as opposed to Indiana Jones, which he still seems to love). Plus, in 2015, Harrison Ford will be 73. Mark Hamill will be 64. This is not how we want to remember Luke Skywalker. Continuing with the original cast would also mean that Episode VII must take place 32 years after Return of the Jedi. The biggest time-jump in the franchise to date is the 19 years between Revenge of the Sith and the original Star Wars. (Or, A New Hope, if you must.)

2.) Recast the characters from the original trilogy.

This might seem like blasphemy, but what's the difference between two separate actors portraying Obi-Wan Kenobi and a second actor playing Luke Skywalker? This is definitely an option, but may not be a wise option. Ewan McGregor was accepted as Obi-Wan because the prequels had to have a younger actor. Luke, Han and Leia, though, are much more beloved than Obi-Wan. If Han Solo is recast, nerds everywhere will bellow, "Why didn't you just cast Harrison Ford?" (Because Harrison Ford doesn't want to be in your new Star Wars movie, nerd. But you're probably not listening, are you?) If I were asked to decide on the future of Episode VII -- no one is ever going to ask me to decide this, obviously -- this is the option that I would pick. Unfortunately, I have a feeling that the most likely option is also the most depressing one:

3.) A whole new group of characters.

Yeah, on the surface, this doesn't sound too appealing. Sure, C-3PO and R2-D2 will most likely always be around, but if Disney executives want to make a series of unlimited films -- and they probably didn't spend $4 billion to purchase Lucasfilm to produce the sequel to Radioland Murders -- they will have to introduce new characters. The problem with this is that unless the next film is set after all of the OT characters have died off (which is certainly plausible), there will have to be some overlap. Obi-Wan and Darth Vader bridged the prequels to the Original Trilogy -- now, another character will have to do the same thing. (Or, at the very least, get mentioned in some way. "Have you seen Han Solo?" "Yes, he's at the cantina, let's just handle this on our own, guys!" It's problematic.) Now, the most likely character to bridge the gap is, of course, Luke Skywalker. If it's just to hand-off the series to another set of characters, however, that's disappointing. I mean, we've been so inundated with the adventures of Anakin Skywalker over the last 13 years (and, newsflash: Anakin is a prick) that Star Wars fans are starved for anything that has to do with the characters from the Original Trilogy. For whatever reason, those characters have been a bit forgotten. If a direct sequel to Return of the Jedi is made in 2015, and the main character is named Blitz Colon (or something) and it's set 200 years after Jedi, well, that's a shame. But, from Disney's standpoint, if they truly want to re-launch a franchise, it's probably their most likely option.

(Also, not surprisingly, I will be writing more about Episode VII all of the time.)

Mike Ryan is senior writer for Huffington Post Entertainment. He likes Star Wars a lot. You can contact him directly on Twitter.

Jedimom · « **Reply #14 on:** October 31, 2012, 09:06:35 AM »

I heard there was a secret meeting between Mark, Carrie and Iab NacDiarmid at C6....

jacensolo66 · « **Reply #15 on:** November 01, 2012, 12:22:26 AM »

Quote from: Lt. Starfox on October 31, 2012, 07:49:55 AM

C'mon guys, this is exciting news for everyone. We all want SW to continue....how many books or comics have we read? a bunch and any of these story lines would be great. My biggest question is where will they be taking this? Will it start off with the Thrawn trilogy? One article states that it will follow Luke, Leia & Han...but when? and who will play these parts?

The franchise is in good hands, let's hope they do it justice.

the problem with that is with no real hope for movie sequels some saw those books as cannon but now disney will probably do their own thing and go in a completely different direction. still looking forward to more movies tho.

Lord-Penter · « **Reply #16 on:** November 01, 2012, 06:26:58 AM »

Disney bought Marvel Studios & we got "The Avengers" & my biggest concern is Disney is going to be way more critical on all licenses & likeness of their properties. Lucas was tough, but he is nothing like Disney is about protecting their Intellectual Properties.
This may be a bad thing for collectors in the long run? Once they have all the Rights & Licensing? They will do what they want with them.
Disney might make it more expensive overall in the future too. They have never over charged on their own stuff or their Theme Parks???
I am just worried & agree with Spice. Let us see how this plays out? Disney is building a Entertainment Monopoly (Empire) & they will control it.
I fear in time? All of our voices will be silenced? & SS, GG, Kotu & even Hasbro may not have their License for products & only Disney will.
I think Hasbro needs a wake up call & it would put them under. The others I would hate to lose in the future.
This is a wait & see with hope & prayers they just do it right.

Vadersfist · « **Reply #17 on:** November 01, 2012, 07:33:48 AM »

Although I am not happy about it AT ALL cause it seems that Disney is going to get their hands on this and I think it sucks period. I have to ask myself though what can the fans do anyway cause even if EP 7 turns out to be crap, theirs nothing that a voice can do even if thats in the thousands that think it sucked. Look at Rotf movie from Transformers it was eh, well it could have been better. At least we ARE still on track to get the Star Wars 1313 game which releases next year within the 1st quaterly year. I just think it was a bad move myself and he should have given it to his daughter that wrote the 1 episode of clone wars but I guess he wants her to go to work for Disney I guess.

David D. · « **Reply #18 on:** November 01, 2012, 11:38:14 AM »

I made this post on my personal Facebook page yesterday and I'll just copy it here since it says most of what I want to say. As a 19 year old fan I guess I just have a different perspective on the whole thing than many others seem to.

Quote

Maybe I'm just lucky, but I'm one of the people who's been hearing about 80% negativity and 20% optimism as a result of the big Star Wars announcement yesterday. It's not a shocker that SW fans are resistant to change (certainly understandable), but my mind is blown by how much naysaying I'm hearing. Probably because for me, this is just about the best news ever.

Why? Because for the last couple years, when I tell people I wish I could have a career that's all about SW fandom (and I'm more determined than ever as of yesterday), the first questions they always ask are "Well how long could that possibly last?", "Yeah but aren't the movies over?", etc.

People say SW is forever. While there's absolutely no denying that the legacy of the original six films and all the other 'pre-Disney' SW stuff will always continue on, we need to ask ourselves how much longer the entire SW 'lifestyle' we've become accustomed to would have remained as prevalent if not for the release of more movies (and all the other amazing stuff I'm sure they've got planned - theme park attractions, etc.). We've had the upcoming 3D re-releases, the toon that can only go on for so long since it covers just three years of canon, the live-action TV show they've been talking about for almost a decade... The announcement of a new film trilogy is the shot in the arm the franchise needed, and is obviously the biggest thing since 1999.

I also think that for the last several years a very small group of male fans age 35+ have controlled a hugely disproportionate amount of the overall content all SW fans enjoy on a daily basis. This is the golden opportunity for my generation of SW fans to start taking things over, bringing in fresh ideas, and steering fandom in a bright and exciting new direction. I was five when The Phantom Menace came out, but I imagine this is how a lot of fans who were my age now (and as SW crazy as I am) must have felt about things back then. It also means there will be kids growing up with the Sequel Trilogy, so that's a whole new generation of fans there too which eventually we will all get to pass things on to.

Only this time, I think the new trilogy will be a lot better received. Just look at what Disney's done with Pixar and Marvel. On a bit of a side note, I've always wanted a series of SW movies like the Marvel movies, where each one focuses on a specific character's origins and adventures (Boba Fett, Princess Leia, KIT FISTO, etc.) and then they all come together for a big movie like Avengers. How awesome would something like that be? I don't think that's what we'll get, but just imagine all the possibilites here. And I also think that Kathleen Kennedy is a fantastic choice to be in charge of the franchise. Anyone with any doubts there needs to look no further than her extensive list of producer credits which include a whole bunch of the greatest films of all time. The Disney SW movies will be good. If anything, I don't think they can disappoint on a level that comes even close to the way the Prequel Trilogy seemed to (for most people); and even IF they do (which they won't), their mere existence will still not only ensure the continuation of all the Star Wars we know and love, but also give future generations of fans the chance to expand and better it.

Just some of my initial thoughts.

pshorrock72 · « **Reply #19 on:** November 01, 2012, 06:23:39 PM »

I am happy as long as troopers are not made with mickey ears!

JediMCor · « **Reply #20 on:** November 01, 2012, 07:12:10 PM »

I with some on the wait and see idea. Maybe it will still be the same or be much better now. Hasbro better be careful or they will be left behind with somebody else taking over with the Starwars merchandise making and selling them. It wouldn't be right if Disney takes over everthing about Starwars, but they bought the rights to it all. Lucas should have kept it in the family, but maybe there was something else going on with that.
But I had a thought today. When Disney has finalize with Lucasfilm. It would be great idea if Disney decides on bringing out the Starwars Holiday Movie onto DVD next year. I like to have it in my stocking.

Lt. Starfox · « **Reply #21 on:** November 02, 2012, 06:32:04 AM »

I'm surprised by the negativity as well....seriously, some new Star Wars is better than no new Star Wars. These are exciting times, embrace & rejoice that the franchise will have new life !!!

JediMCor · « **Reply #22 on:** November 02, 2012, 10:12:05 AM »

More Starwars is better than none. Hopefully GREED doesn't prevail over this deal.
I will believe it when I see it. Better to explore new adventures than be a stiff of how Starwars become.

Slobba_the_Hutt · « **Reply #23 on:** November 02, 2012, 11:24:26 AM »

I'm excited that more new movies are on the way

I'm not a prequel hater, but I will admit that some of the way things went surprised me (Jar Jar)

I wont have any problems with these new movies telling a new story that we haven't read in the novels or seen in the comics, I just hope that the new story can fit in with them and not run roughshod all over the last 20+ years of EU

if the new stuff is the further adventures of Luke, I sure hope that MH is back for the role, same for Leia and Han
but I wouldn't mind if they only talk about Han and we don't actually see him

JediMCor · « **Reply #24 on:** January 08, 2013, 09:33:57 AM »

Disney wants to make changes.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/exclusive-disney-looks-cost-savings-011949084.html;_ylt=AgHk2OLdKfHmBVjNDzCWr0KiuYdG;_ylu=X3oDMTNyNnNjbWN1BG1pdANGUCBUb3AgU3RvcnkgTGVmdARwa2cDMjcwMWRlNDMtYjAyNC0zMzAxLThmNzktZmZmYzFhZjQzNzFiBHBvcwMyBHNlYwN0b3Bfc3RvcnkEdmVyA2Y0NWRmZTIzLTU5YTYtMTFlMi1iZWVkLTBmZjMyODdlZjllZg--;_ylg=X3oDMTFpNzk0NjhtBGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdANob21lBHB0A3NlY3Rpb25z;_ylv=3

Nabil6901 · « **Reply #25 on:** January 08, 2013, 11:36:36 AM »

That really bites! Man I really hope this doesn't affect the whole new Star Wars franchise cause give me a break Disney makes so much money on a daily basis so how in the world did they lose the amount of money that's said in that article in the last three years?? Greed truly takes over the mind of the higher ups doesn't it!?