To many, a director and writer, working on a Star Wars film, let alone a whole trilogy, would be the dream and a real career booster.
However, in the case of Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and DB Weiss, it’s a dream job they’ve chosen to let go.
Yep, you heard right. The highly creative duo was set to write and produce a whole new trilogy of Star Wars movies following the closure of the Skywalker saga. The much-publicized event was announced way back in February 2018 and was both lauded and criticized in equal measure. But now, according to Deadline, they’ve turned it down.
But what was the reason for the pair’s departure? Well, it’s quite simple. Benioff and Weiss are far too busy with their demanding schedules. After all, after being approached by six studios following GOT‘s success, they took a $200 million deal with Netflix last month to write, direct and produce new features for the service.
“There are only so many hours in the day,” the pair said in a statement to Deadline recently, “There are only so many hours in the day, and we felt we could not do justice to both Star Wars and our Netflix projects“.
Regardless, they went on to state that they “loved Star Wars” and that getting “to talk about Star Wars with [creator, George Lucas] and the current Star Wars team was the thrill of a lifetime, and we will always be indebted to the saga that changed everything.”
In a separate statement, however, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy indicated that the door was open for the TV talents after their schedules were eventually cleared. Praising them as “incredible storytellers”, she said they hoped “to include them in the journey forward”.
But it’s not as if fans will be left in the wilderness, longing for new Star Wars content to consume. Disney has just released an epic trailer for their Disney+ series, The Mandalorian. Not only that, but Ewan McGregor is due to reprise his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi for a six-episode miniseries. Then there’s the Clone Wars continuation. Oh, and don’t forget the Kevin Feige-produced movie…and the Rian Johnson trilogy in the works.
In other words, without Benioff and Weiss, the franchise is still going strong – and unlikely to end anytime soon.
Do you think Star Wars has lost out by losing Benioff and Weiss? Or don’t you think it’s such a big deal? Share your opinions in the comments below.
