Disney Buying LucasFilm! WHOA

[fractal]

Dream directors for SW7...

http://www.hitfix.com/galleries/directors-to-consider-for-star-wars-episode-7/more-galleries

 

[sshindel]

No - because resort themes must be very very very time resilent. DVCs are sold for upwards of 50 years!

No matter how strong the franchise... locking it in for that long alienates buyers and is a risky proposition

I think that the argument could be made that the franchise has already held strong for 35 years, it could theoretically be just as strong for the next 50. Think of the folks like those in the 501st Stormtrooper Legion, those that go to the Celebration and Cons, who are very committed to everything Star Wars. Those folks have a very loyal love, and would be a very solid target audience for DVC.

It's kind of an interesting thought experiment, as most DVC structures would not have the same sense of community as would already be built into a Star Wars DVC. Folks who own at Bay Lake don't necessarily have anything in common with each other, other than their love of WDW. Those that bought at a Star Wars themed DVC would basically all be connected by their fandom of one very specific genre/film, and a fandom which tends to support a much stronger sense of community than general WDW guests have. It'd be like a yearlong Star Wars Celebration.

Again, I'm not saying that they should do this, but I can say that if I were ever to buy a DVC, I'd have a much higher chance of buying one at a Star Wars themed resort than at GF or SS.

 

[John]

You ever walk inot a room in on a conversation and feel like you have no idea what they are talking about? Thats how I feel, I am a casual SW fan. Loved the firsat three but have never sat thru the second three. Just couldnt hold me there.... All this SW talk might as well be spoken in another language. Frankly whatever Disney does with SW I think I will be the target audience. Am I familiar with SW....ofcourse but I wouldnt know a Thrawn from a perfect stranger. IMO I think in someway they need to use the first three to "hook" fans such as myself. Weather it be cameos or a secondary character. Give some familiarity to it.

As long as you dont make the plot line and story about Luke and Co. it will give us luke (pun intended) warm fans something to grasp on to.

 

[Mawg]

Trust me...people would watch. Especially if they started from Episode I and went in chronological order.

Think about it. The majority of the fans loathe Episode I. If they reimagined the "beginning" and then worked onto Episode II...by the time they got to Episodes IV thru VI people would be more comfortable with the new look/feel/story that is being told. Not a replacement, a reimagining.

Do I personally feel that they could do better than the originals? Maybe not A New Hope and Empire but Return of the Jedi could definitely be better.

(Remember...there were people that said that nobody could do better than Connery's Bond or Nicholson's Joker...but some would say that happened.)

I'm sure Lucus would not want this and I'm sure he had discussions with Disney about the future of the films and did not sell his baby until he felt comfortable. Fans were mad enough when Lucus went back and changed a few things in the original trilogy can you imagine the outcry if all six were redone (reimagined). Not going to happen. They are either going to tell the story after Return of the Jedi or going to start a new story well beyond the Return of the Jedi or even way prior to the first. Maybe something like the first jedi or the birth of the Dark Side. There are a lot of rumors out there that the story will not follow any of the books already written.

 

[WDWFREAK53]

No they won't do that because unlike Star Trek, Star Wars its the number 3rd franchise in the world behind those of James Bond and Harry Potter.

They won't? Even though Casino Royale wasn't a rehash...it takes place before the other Bonds and he's driving around in brand new cars, etc. That's the #2 Franchise.

Again, I'm not saying that I want to see this and I don't think it's a wise idea...but what I am saying is that it's a possibility down the road...especially if they come up with an idea that fits chronologically between the current films.

(Something tells me that Lucas wanted to rehash the originals once he got working on the prequels...why else would he mess with them?)

 

[John]

It wouldn't make sense to me to retread old ground and remake films that are barely a decade old. The prequels are what they are, they might not be universally loved but they're the story Lucas wanted to tell and, like them or loathe them, he told the story the way he wanted. Personally, I can't see anyone beside Mark Hammill as Luke Skywalker or Harrison Ford as Han Solo and it would be particularly hard for the fanatical SW fanbase to accept such changes. It might be possible but it would be pointless; why would you remake Empire Strikes Back?

Like it or not.....the fanatical fanbase will go see whatever is paraded out before them. Its much more about a larger audience. As long as they dont completely tank....you will be there.

 

[SirLink]

They won't? Even though Casino Royale wasn't a rehash...it takes place before the other Bonds and he's driving around in brand new cars, etc. That's the #2 Franchise.

Again, I'm not saying that I want to see this and I don't think it's a wise idea...but what I am saying is that it's a possibility down the road...especially if they come up with an idea that fits chronologically between the current films.

(Something tells me that Lucas wanted to rehash the originals once he got working on the prequels...why else would he mess with them?)

Bond is kinda anomaly as basically the top agent gets the alias of James Bond, the person in charge gets the codename 'M' etc. in Ian Flemming's universe. So that it never feels like a retread and considering the original Casino Royale was a parody it serves the perspective of being a constant moving franchise.

They'll do prequels? Sure. They'll do a full on reboot? Nope, nadda, nein, never.

 

[kittybubbles]

Despite most analysts and folks in the industry (and even ME) thinking this was a very good deal, Wall Street didn't agree today as WDC shares plunged 1.92%.

Not sure Wall Street treated that bad on day one. I think I read GL will own 2.2% of Disney's shares. Since Disney will be issuing new shares to cover GL's stock, so in my mind, the new stock issued brought the shares down. Typically any company buying another will cause a stock price drop for the company doing the purchasing...anyway, I just wanted to point out that Disney's stock really did not move at all when you consider there were more shares issued to cover half the cost of the purchase.

Even if all things Lucas is said to bring in $$ in merchandise, and who knows how much of that was paid by Disney (which will be a cost savings for them), it is still going to take a long time for a ROI. Merchandise sales should increas once a new film comes out and that is when the ROI should start....plus I understand Disney has better marketing outside of the US than what Lucas had....

EDIT: I see others brought the point about the stock up, I hadn't read all the post at the time I posted this...

 

[imagineer boy]

I personally think they'd be better off making a spin-off series as opposed to a direct continuation of the episodes 1-6 story. Same universe and places, but totally new characters and story arc. I'd actually look forward to something like that a lot more than an episode 7.

 

[Mawg]

Like it or not.....the fanatical fanbase will go see whatever is paraded out before them. Its much more about a larger audience. As long as they dont completely tank....you will be there.

I'm not so sure about this. But they will never redo the two trilogies so we'll never know.

 

[EPCOTCenterLover]

I have to ask: which two?

The first two that were released to the theaters. Jar Jar Binks? After that, I was through.

 

[HMF]

I really hope the new films are consistent with the Expanded Universe. I would hate to see stories and characters that I connected with become obsolete.

 

[Mawg]

I personally think they'd be better off making a spin-off series as opposed to a direct continuation of the episodes 1-6 story. Same universe and places, but totally new characters and story arc. I'd actually look forward to something like that a lot more than an episode 7.

Maybe, but it would be hard not to intertwine the characters from the other trilogies. You still have the same evil in the Universe and the same good. I guess a good writer can to anything but Star Wars has always been about the Force and the Dark Side, I don't think you can stray from that. And Evil will always triumph because Good is dumb.

 

[FrankLapidus]

Like it or not.....the fanatical fanbase will go see whatever is paraded out before them. Its much more about a larger audience. As long as they dont completely tank....you will be there.

This is the fanatical fanbase that goes crazy everytime Lucas goes back and meddles with the original films for a DVD or Blu Ray release (does Han Solo still shoot first or is it Greedo?). I just don't see many getting too excited about Star Wars remakes. Maybe there could be remakes way, way, way down the line but not anytime soon.

 

[HMF]

I don't think they should movie canonize the books. They'll need to say the old expanded universe is a alternate/parallel universe. It's too complicated to fit it all together which is why Lucas gave up. I like the idea of Luke/Han/leia being old and it's about their adult kids.

Two of their adult kids are already dead.

 

[Beholder]

Maybe, but it would be hard not to intertwine the characters from the other trilogies. You still have the same evil in the Universe and the same good. I guess a good writer can to anything but Star Wars has always been about the Force and the Dark Side, I
don't think you can stray from that. And Evil will
always triumph because Good is dumb.

But Good has a bigger shwartz.

 

[Mawg]

But Good has a bigger shwartz.

but it still can get twisted

 

[John]

This is the fanatical fanbase that goes crazy everytime Lucas goes back and meddles with the original films for a DVD or Blu Ray release (does Han Solo still shoot first or is it Greedo?). I just don't see many getting too excited about Star Wars remakes. Maybe there could be remakes way, way, way down the line but not anytime soon.

OH....I agree...my point was no matter what is done with the franchise the SW faithful will be out in full FORCE...once again....pun intended

 

[imagineer boy]

Maybe, but it would be hard not to intertwine the characters from the other trilogies. You still have the same evil in the Universe and the same good. I guess a good writer can to anything but Star Wars has always been about the Force and the Dark Side, I don't think you can stray from that. And Evil will always triumph because Good is dumb.

Well, you could always tell a story about different jedis and show their point of view during the Clone Wars or events after RotJ. At least something along the lines of that. Although if they ever did that I'm sure cameos by character from the original series would make cameos.

 

[Beholder]

but it still can get twisted

This conversation could become Ludicrous, maybe even Plaid if we're not careful.