George Lucas created one of the most imaginative film worlds out there at a time when technological advancement in films was still miles away. However, the creative process also took a toll on Lucas and he was open about the stress that filming Star Wars caused him. He even revealed that the long gap of nearly 16 years between the original and prequel series was a deliberate move because of two major reasons.
Lucas stepped down from directing duties after the first film in 1977. After handing over the director’s role to Irvin Kershner, Lucas focused solely on developing his special effects company ILM. Lucas avoided taking further stress when he decided not to direct Return of the Jedi as well.
George Lucas Revealed The Real Reason Why Original And Prequel Star Wars Came 16 Years Apart
George Lucas was clearly unmotivated to return to Star Wars when talks about further movies ensued after Return of the Jedi. While he attributed the lack of motivation to several factors, Lucas had a couple of other reasons that made him want to wait before he jumped into another film.
During an interview with Barry Norman on his TV show Film Night, Lucas discussed his prequel trilogy’s first film The Phantom Menace. He shared that the most important reason for the 16-year gap between the films was the burnout after creating three epic space films. The original trilogy films were released within a gap of 2 years between them, meaning the filmmaking process was exhaustive.
Lucas also shared that he had created a vast world in the Star Wars universe and could only put a small part of it on the screen. He shared that he had to wait for the technology to catch up before he made another film in the franchise. Lucas shared with Norman (via theforce.net):
Well, there were a number of reasons. The first, I was burned out, that’s probably the most important. Also, I had been very frustrated because my imagination had created a large, crazy world and I could only put a very small part of it on screen so I wanted to wait until the technology caught up.
After Return of the Jedi, Lucas began developing the backstories for the characters including Anakin. When Lucas was convinced that CGI had advanced to the levels he wanted, he began writing the script of The Phantom Menace in 1993. The film’s shooting finally kicked off in June 1997.
George Lucas Was More Comfortable Filming Prequel Trilogy Than The Original Trilogy
Unlike the Star Wars original trilogy, George Lucas was the director of all three projects in the prequel trilogy. It appears that Lucas managed to find it easy and fun to film the prequel series due to the advancement in technology. However, it wasn’t the case during the original trilogy when he refused to take on the director’s mantle after the first film.
While Star Wars brought him fame and money, it also had an impact on his health and brought negative attention in the form of threats. The stress was too much for him and he considered other directors (almost 100!) before hiring his old friend Irvin Kershner for the job. While Kershner did a great job with The Empire Strikes Back, he refused to return to another film due to the long shoots.
Lucas considered Steven Spielberg but the DGA banned him from helming a non-guild film (via Grantland). Other directors, like David Lynch and David Cronenberg, were also considered before Richard Marquand was appointed director of the third film. He jokingly shared about his director’s role, “It is rather like trying to direct King Lear – with Shakespeare in the next room!” (via WhatCulture).
George Lucas’ Star Wars movies are now available for streaming on Disney+.
