Last Jedi Director Rian Johnson Reveals Whether Negative Reactions Killed His Star Wars Trilogy

It’s not easy making a Star Wars movie. You can go the “either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain” route, as JJ Abrams’ almost universally acclaimed “The Force Awakens” was completely undone when he returned for the poorly received “The Rise of Skywalker.” There’s an “at least I tried” consolation prize for filmmakers on troubled productions, including Phil Lord, Chris Miller, Josh Trank and Colin Trevorrow. And who can forget the “Trapped in Purgatory” option dedicated to Taika Waititi, James Mangold, and others… Supposedly They have projects in development.

Somewhere in the middle of all this is Rian Johnson, who delivered the critically acclaimed (although divisive) film “The Last Jedi.” The original plan was for Johnson to debut “Episode VIII,” help craft the “Episode IX” story that concludes the Skywalker Saga, and work on an original trilogy of “Star Wars” films. Obviously, things turned out very differently, and the generally accepted narrative placed the blame squarely on The Last Jedi’s vitriolic reactions that were amplified online.

However, the one who disputes this version of events is Johnson himself. While promoting his own “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery” trilogy at the Newport Beach Film Festival in California (via a fan account post on X), the writer/director denied fan backlash by killing off the “Star Wars” trilogy:

“No, not at all. Actually, that’s why I wanted it. My overall putting experience.” [‘The Last Jedi’] Out, and what you’re talking about with the fan comments – I mean, first and foremost, I’m a lifelong “Star Wars” fan. So, I know the deal. I know “Star Wars” fans are excited about this stuff. We love the things we love, we hate the things we hate, and we fight about them. “This has been happening since the original trilogy.”

Rian Johnson certainly isn’t wrong about, er, passion Star Wars fan for decades. Before the original films became some of the most important films in blockbuster history, audiences were initially very mixed about now-beloved films like “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi.” While younger generations led the charge in reclaiming the prequels, it wasn’t long until George Lucas’s trilogy was considered little more than a pop culture statement. Time will likely end up treating sequels in a similar way, believe it or not, but that intrinsic sense of ownership is something Johnson experienced personally. He explained that:

“The idea that ‘Star Wars’ was a Shangri-la, a unified fandom, and that anything could break that into pieces — the truth is that ‘Star Wars’ has always been something that means different things to different people. And I think that’s part of the fun and passion of it as a fan, and he argues about that with respect.”

Writer/Director @ryanjohnson Discusses #Star Wars: #TheLastJedi At the Newport Beach Film Festival 🎬 pic.twitter.com/MvJX46xpFl

— Star Wars Culture (@SWCultureLive) November 5, 2025

Johnson went on to mention how he encountered fans who had “deep connections” to both “The Last Jedi” and “Star Wars” as a whole in the years following the film’s 2017 release. “And so it was the most positive experience I’ve ever had with anything I’ve made, in terms of interaction with the people who saw it,” he added. “I came out on the other end of it and loved the Star Wars fandom more than just coming into it.” It’s fairly easy to take the director’s always positive word for it, especially since he had nothing but good things to say about his visit to the “Star Wars” universe. However, it remains to be seen whether he actually makes this trilogy happen.