Rian Johnson On Why Not Giving Fans What They Want Is Good

“Having been a ‘Star Wars’ fan my whole life, and having spent most of my life on the other side of the curb and in that fandom, it softens the blow a little bit. I’m aware through my own experience that, first of all, the fans are so passionate, they care so deeply — sometimes they care very violently at me on Twitter. But it’s because they care about these things, and it hurts when you’re expecting something specific and you don’t get it from something that you love,” he said. “It always hurts, so I don’t take it personally if a fan reacts negatively and lashes out on me on Twitter. That’s fine. It’s my job to be there for that. Like you said, every fan has a list of stuff they want a ‘Star Wars’ movie to be and they don’t want a ‘Star Wars’ movie to be. You’re going to find very few fans out there whose lists line up.

“And I also know the same way the original movies were personal for [George] Lucas. Lucas never made a ‘Star Wars’ movie by sitting down and thinking, ‘What do the fans want to see?’ And I knew if I wrote wondering what the fans would want, as tempting as that is, it wouldn’t work, because people would still be shouting at me, ‘F— you, you ruined ‘Star Wars,’ ‘ and I would make a bad movie. And ultimately, that’s the one thing nobody wants,” Johnson continued. “And let me just add that 80-90% of the reaction I’ve gotten from Twitter has been really lovely. There’s been a lot of joy and love from fans. When I talk about the negative stuff, that’s not the full picture of the fans at all.”

Like it or not, “Star Wars” is moving on, and it’s no longer just Luke Skywalker’s story. For those who only have a single-minded view of what the franchise can be, they years ahead are going to be filled with ongoing disappointment.