Director J.J. Abrams responds to criticism he has received in the wake of the release of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”…
It’s not possible to please everyone as J.J. Abrams has found out in the wake of the release of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.”
Considering he wasn’t originally attached to the movie until Disney and Lucasfilm asked him to come back to close out the trilogy that started with his 2015 film “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” Abrams knew when signing on that the final film in the Skywalker saga was going to be divisive no matter what.
While critics have been harsh on the film, audiences have been much kinder although it’s still a mixed bag of reviews overall after “The Rise of Skywalker” was first released into theaters last week.
In response, Abrams addressed the criticism over the film following a screening this past Friday in Hollywood.
“No, I would say that they’re right,” Abrams said about criticism surrounding the film. “[But] the people who love it more than anything are also right. I was asked … ‘So how do you go about pleasing everyone?’ I was like: ‘What…?’ Not to say that that’s what anyone should try to do anyway, but how would one go about it? Especially with Star Wars.
“I don’t need to tell anybody here, we live in a moment where everything immediately seems to default to outrage. There’s an M.O. where ‘it’s either exactly as I see it or you’re my enemy’ … It’s a crazy thing that there’s such a norm that seems to be devoid of nuance and compassion — and this is not about Star Wars, this is about everything … we knew every decision we made would please someone and infuriate someone else.”
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In the day and age of social media where everybody has a voice, no film has been universally praised, especially massive blockbusters like those in the “Star Wars” franchise. Even movies such as “Avengers: Endgame,” which have been critically acclaimed and received extremely high audience scores, have still faced criticism from a certain section of fans who complained about how the 10 year journey of the first phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe came to an end.
While “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” has received mixed reviews overall, the franchise will still be moving forward full steam ahead with several more films already in the works. The only thing that has been put to bed is the Skywalker saga as those franchise characters and that particular storyline have been completed — or at least until Lucasfilm decides otherwise in the future.
“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” is in theaters now and you can read our review for the movie here.
