J.J. Abrams Wants To Honor Star Wars Mythology, But Not Revere It
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Now that Star Trek Into Darkness has been in U.S. theaters for about a month now, director J.J. Abrams is making the transition from Star Trek to Star Wars. Production on Star Wars: Episode VII is scheduled to begin in early 2014 in London, England, and Abrams is planning to pack up his gear to move his family across the Atlantic.
As reported in Variety, during the Producers Guild of America’s conference, Abrams spoke briefly about the forthcoming Star Wars sequel. As casting gets started on the seventh installment in the Star Wars film franchise, there are still some big question marks about what the new film’s narrative and cast of characters. When asked about how he will handle Star Wars‘ deep and rich mythology, Abrams answered, “I think that the thing is so big and so massive to so many people that the key to moving forward is honoring but not revering what went before.”
It seems as if J.J. Abrams might do the same thing to Star Wars as he did to Star Trek. In 2009, when Abrams’ first Star Trek film was released, it was a genuine surprise that the director incorporated so much Star Trek mythology, while at the same time delivering a movie that was fresh and exciting for general audiences and Star Trek fans alike. Let’s hope J.J. Abrams can re-create that spirit again with Star Wars: Episode VII.
It’s interesting to think about what the central story for the new Star Wars sequel trilogy might be. Back in 1997, when George Lucas announced that there would be a new Star Wars trilogy, we knew it was going to be prequels and would focus on how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader. Now that Darth Vader is (most likely) out of the picture, will Star Wars: Episode VII focus on a new clan of Skywalkers and Solos? We will certainly find out in 2015.
