Good ol' George Lucas, he is nothing if not clever. Despite making no mention of an additional Star Wars film trilogy in the years after Revenge of the Sith, Lucas now says it was his intention all along to create a new installment in the sci-fi franchise.
Specifically, he planned on creating the first film, Episode VII, to release in 2015. After the movie's success and with a roadmap of future installments finished, he then planned on selling Lucasfilm. But everything turned out better than he planned when Disney expressed interest in buying Lucasfilm and making Episode VII themselves. The deal became final in 2012, when Disney bought the film company for $4 billion.
"It's better for me to get out at the beginning of a new thing and I can just remove myself," Lucas tells USA Today in an interview about the new Lucasfilm picture Strange Magic. "The time is more important to me than the money."
Lucas now uses all that additional free time to work on other, smaller projects, as well as spend time with his family. For years Star Wars and Lucasfilm dominated the director's life, leaving little time for much else. But Lucas says he only has one regret (only one?) when it comes to Star Wars.
"The only thing I really regret about Star Wars is the fact I never got to see it - I never got to be blown out of my seat when the ship came over the screen," Lucas says. "The next one, I'll be able to enjoy it like anybody else."
Hopefully he doesn't wait too long to see the movie, lest it be spoiled for him. As of Dec. 8, Lucas had yet to watch the trailer for J.J. Abrams' The Force Awakens because it wasn't playing in a movie theater. Depending on how often Lucas goes to the movies, maybe he will get around to seeing it eventually.
