Colin Trevorrow leaves director's seat for Episode IX

Brandon Rhea

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Colin Trevorrow is a hack director so I'm happy about this news. I was very worried to see the conclusion to Rey and Leia's stories being handled by the director of Jurassic World and The Book of Henry.
 

Phil

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Colin Trevorrow is a hack director so I'm happy about this news. I was very worried to see the conclusion to Rey and Leia's stories being handled by the director of Jurassic World and The Book of Henry.

Why is he a hack? Out of curiosity. I liked Jurassic World, as the best sequel since the original, but I have heard quite bad things about Book of Henry.
 

Brandon Rhea

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Why is he a hack? Out of curiosity. I liked Jurassic World, as the best sequel since the original, but I have heard quite bad things about Book of Henry.
I mean "best sequel to the original" isn't saying too much about the franchise lol

It was a fairly mediocre movie overall that relied on nostalgia. Jurassic World and The Force Awakens did the same thing, but Jurassic World failed in all the ways that The Force Awakens succeeded. Jurassic World was pure nostalgia trip. It didn't offer anything new to the franchise and it didn't offer any compelling new characters.

He's also not good at writing female characters. Bryce Dallas Howard's character in Jurassic World is a good example of that.
 

Phil

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I mean "best sequel to the original" isn't saying too much about the franchise lol

It was a fairly mediocre movie overall that relied on nostalgia. Jurassic World and The Force Awakens did the same thing, but Jurassic World failed in all the ways that The Force Awakens succeeded. Jurassic World was pure nostalgia trip. It didn't offer anything new to the franchise and it didn't offer any compelling new characters.

He's also not good at writing female characters. Bryce Dallas Howard's character in Jurassic World is a good example of that.

I'm a huge fan of the Jurassic franchise, including the novels. So I think that may be why I liked it more. lol But World is totally a nostalgia trip, agreed. I enjoyed it and new ideas it put out(A successful Dinosaur theme park and gene splicing different dinosaurs and animals into one). Compared to it's other two, I think it's better, but that is just me. I know J.A. Bayona has a better track record though, so I look forward to what he does with Fallen Kingdom.

Though what you said... "Leia's Conclusion". That does remind me that due to Carrie Fisher's passing, they had to rewrite Episode 9 since she was supposed to be in it. I'm curious on what they will do with that in 9, or even The Last Jedi.
 

Brandon Rhea

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My instinct is that the changes to the story are a big reason why Trevorrow is no longer on the project. Putting myself into the mindset of someone writing a movie, you get very attached to what you're working on. The movie was going to be Leia-centric in the way that The Force Awakens was Han-centric and The Last Jedi will be Luke-centric. So all of a sudden, the entire movie has to change. It's not a case where it can just be reworked a bit - they would've had to start over.

Imagine having a story in your head that you felt was the best version of Episode IX. Now imagine not being able to do it anymore. Now imagine the mental tug-of-war between what you wanted and this new reality, and the other creative forces at play like the producers and the Story Group. That can easily lead to a situation where "creative differences" is very much a reason for parting ways with a project.
 

Phil

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It reminds me when the two directors for "Han Solo" were canned and replaced with Ron Howard and Edgar Wright for Ant Man.

It's a thing that happens, and the original versions they had might be good(Except a Han Solo comedy, I just can't see that working), it's clearly the direction Disney and Lucasfilm don't want to go, no matter the director's reputation. Best they can always do is release or leak their rough draft of what the film was going to be, which to be honest, I wouldn't mind seeing what the original one for Episode 9 would be once these films are released.
 

Brandon Rhea

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I don't think it's a coincidence that the two directors who have seen greatest success with their Star Wars productions so far, those being J.J. Abrams and Rian Johnson, are also seasoned television veterans. Directors who are used to directing movies as their primary medium are used to having control. Television directors recognize that they're a guest in a larger sandbox and that they have to collaborate. Without that collaboration, the process falls apart. Lucasfilm should be looking more for that kind of director, or a deferential and long-time friend like Ron Howard, instead of people who are looking to have complete control over a creative vision.

Who are the most successful directors at Marvel thus far? The Russo Brothers, who were television directors. Though Joss Whedon is also an exception to this considering he also came to television, and got burned out on Avengers 2. So coming from television doesn't guarantee success, but it's certainly a helpful background.

Meanwhile, over at DC, you can have so little studio involvement that someone with a flawed vision like Zack Snyder can have too much creative vision, bringing us Man of Steel, Dawn of Justice, and what looks to have been a really bumpy production for Justice League. Even Suicide Squad, while not his movie, carried on with his vision for the DC universe.
 

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Despite all these hiccups, Star Wars will still be an amazing franchise, especially (in my opinion) the originals.

I truly wish that Star Wars continues even though production is often times rough. It's almost like something that's essential to Star Wars no matter what. Plot changes, indecision (cough Lucas cough), there will still always be Star Wars. Unless people lose every VCS tape and internet search somehow. Like how SW's galaxy got amnesia and forgot about the Empire and Han Solo in 40 years.
 

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I never did think Colin Trevorrow was a good pick as director. Jurassic World wasn't that interesting to me and I found the direction flat. I'm glad he's gone, however it would have been a much better decision to not hire him in the first place. I doubt there's enough time to write a new script, so whoever replaces him will not have the freedom JJ or Rian Johnson had when they were making their films.

I'm just crossing my fingers hoping the directorial changes won't make IX end up like the Hobbit films.
 

Brandon Rhea

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whoever replaces him will not have the freedom JJ or Rian Johnson had when they were making their films.
I disagree on that one. The amount of time between now and when production will likely begin (sometime in the winter) is roughly the same amount of time that J.J. Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan had to write the script after Michael Arndt left The Force Awakens. By all accounts they scrapped Arndt's script and started over. Whether or not the new writer would need to do that for Episode IX remains to be seen.
 

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Whether or not the new writer would need to do that for Episode IX remains to be seen.
Last I heard, a writer by the name of Jack Thorne was retooling the script. But that was before this happened. Whether he still is, I don't know.

JJ was already attached to the project for around eight months before he took over writing duties with Lawrence Kasdan. Still, it is an apt comparison.

I am probably being overly pessimistic. But all these changes are tempting fate too much for my liking. They may be able to write a new script in time like JJ and Kasdan were able to, or they might be able to make Trevorrow's script work. Both are possible, but both are riskier than simply having a better choice in director in the first place.
 
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Brandon Rhea

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JJ was director and involved creatively, yeah, but they still started over with everything but the most basic elements ("a girl becomes a Jedi" etc).
 
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