“You just lost I don’t know how many million dollars!” : This legendary director gave up on Star Wars

Particularly demanding, physically and morally, filming Star Wars left its mark on George Lucas. Disputes with his technical team, massive budget overruns, delays in the shooting schedule, endless post-production…

It is enough to convince the filmmaker to hand over the next part of his trilogy in the making, especially since, by his own admission, the production hardly excites him. He prefers to stay in the producer’s chair, which also logically allows him to review the development of the next film.

So he smartly cast Irwin Kershner for The Empire Strikes Back, released in 1980 and considered by many to be the best film of the original trilogy. then new hopeIt is still a huge success at the worldwide box office.

George Lucas was upset

For the third and final installment, Return of the Jedi, Lucas is again on the hunt for a director who can rely on and support the vision of the world he’s created. And why not his old associate Steven Spielberg, who just released Raiders of the Lost Ark, the story of which was written by George Lucas?

Hopes of handing over the reins of the film to a friend were short-lived. In 1980, Lucas was indeed fined a rather hefty $250,000 by the Almighty. Directors Guild of AmericaBecause it will not be credited The Empire will respond Director’s name, Irwin Kershner, at the beginning of the credits.

In fact, the union believed that the mention of “Lucasfilm” (his company was founded in 1971, hence his name) meant that the film was made by the producer, not the director. Lucas pays the fine, but, burned by the case, abstains Directors Guild of America.

Although membership of the organization is not compulsory, it is forbidden for one of its members to make a film outside the conventions established with the majors. In fact, as a member of the DGA, Spielberg could not accept the offer of a friend who had just slammed the door of the Union with a bang.

“You just lost millions of dollars!”

While watching outside the DGA, Lucas was intrigued by the profile of David Lynch, who had just earned an Oscar nomination for Best Director for his dazzling Elephant Man. George asked me to meet him to talk about the third installment of Star Wars, but I had almost no interest. has Lynch spoke about this meeting later.

and add: “But I’ve always admired George. George is someone who does what he loves. And I do what I love. The difference is that George likes to make hundreds of millions of dollars. So I thought you should go and meet him anyway. And it was incredible.”

The director, who had only two films under his belt at the time (with Eraserhead in 1977), then suggested that Lucas direct the film himself to better fit his vision. The meeting, which is also shrouded in absolute secrecy, given the expectations surrounding the completion of the trilogy and the financial issues behind it.

“I had to go to this building in Los Angeles. I had to have a special credit card, then special keys. Then they sent me a letter and a map. Then I went to the airport and flew out. I went to this building with a rented car and said: “I want to show you something.”

Lynch adds: “At this point I started getting a bit of a headache… He took me up. And he showed me these things called wookies. And now this headache is getting worse. He showed me a lot of different animals and things.

Then he took me for a drive in his Ferrari at lunch. Giorgi is not very tall. Therefore, he had to move the seat back, almost lying in the car. And here we go through this small town in Northern California. We went to a restaurant. Not that I don’t like salad. But they only had salad.

Then really… I almost got a migraine. And I couldn’t wait to get home. Before I even got home, I went to a phone booth and called my agent and said, “There’s no way! There’s no way I’m going to do this movie!” He replied, “David, David, David… calm down, you don’t have to make this movie.”

That’s why I told Giorgi on the phone the very next day that he should go. It’s his movie. I called my lawyer and told him I wasn’t going to do it. And he said, “You just lost, I don’t know how many million dollars, but that’s okay!”

Cronenberg and the Arrogance of Youth

Shortly after this meeting, Lynch was approached by producer Dino De Laurentiis to entrust him with the reins of the adaptation of Dune, which, in addition to being a terrible commercial failure, was a poisoned chalice for the director, George Lucas tried. Briefly investigate David Cronenberg, as the latter mentioned in 2018 Entertainment Weekly.

“I still remember getting the call. Someone said they were calling from Lucasfilm and asked if I was interested in ‘Revenge of the Jedi’ – that’s what it was called at one point, until someone pointed out that it was against the philosophy of the Jedi. Thinking in terms of revenge.

They asked me if I was interested in making a movie and meeting everyone. I told him with the arrogance of youth: “I am not used to working with other people’s materials.” And there was a stunned silence, followed by the phone ‘clicking’ off.”

Finally, it would be Richard Marquand, who is also considered more docile than Irwin Kershner, who was rude to Luke. The Empire will respondwho will reach Return of the Jedi. Lucas will even direct the second installment in the film, allowing him to further increase his control and the pressure that comes with it. Which inspires Marquand in this reflection: “It’s a bit like filming King Lear with Shakespeare in the next room!”