Recreating STAR WARS: How Disney+ Can Reinvent It

The finger-pointing over the financial failure of Solo: A Star Wars Story rages on to this day. Some believe it is because of the release date. Others believe it was the directorial woes at the start. There are some that think it was poor marketing and bad reviews. Finally, others believe it’s just simply Star Wars burn out. The truth is, it was all of those. But what makes it a growing fan favorite is that it was original. Regardless of the problems, it was good story-telling. Perhaps even a Star Wars story before it’s time.

Fans already knew most of the tale. The Solo movie filled in gaps. We were given details of characters that are legends; showing us where we were right or wrong in our imaginations. The film reinvented Han and Chewie’s origin for a legion of new fans that weren’t there in 1977 to see who shot first. Solo is a success because it was on the right path. It’s time to reinvent the Star Wars universe, and Disney+ can do just that.

What Episodes VII, VIII and IX are supposed to be

The current Sequel Trilogy, as some call it, is supposed to bring a pantheon of new Star Wars legends to a new fan base; a younger fan base that will keep the franchise alive for years to come. A Star Wars for a new generation. Some older fans disagree, citing the heroes of their childhood have been hijacked by people who don’t know what they’re doing.

Long-time fans claim the current plot is a rehash of the original trilogy, especially Episode VII. While the parallels are hard to dismiss, the film is different enough to stand on it’s own. Then there’s the argument of burn out. Too many movies too quickly.

“Any franchise can suffer from fatigue, particularly ones that have been around for decades. To last into the future, they need to connect with audiences as they reinvent themselves. That’s why we’ve seen so many versions of James Bond, or the Halloween movies over the years. Not every movie in those franchises has worked, but they’ve been able to reinvent themselves and sustain audience interest across generations.”                                                         

Daniel Loria, editorial director of Boxoffice Pro, to Business Insider.

He’s exactly right, and that’s where Disney+ swoops in like a X-Wing squadron in attack formation.

Disney+: A 24/7 Disney marketing machine

The telecommunications battles between Sprint, Verizon, AT&T and other telecom giants in the 90’s was a precursor to the new war; the war for our entertainment dollars. The choices are vast: Apple TV, Hulu, Sling, Amazon, and Netflix, in addition to others. Netflix became a streaming juggernaut not because it was first, or bigger, or better marketed. It became what it is because of content, and that’s what this next battle is all about.

Content.

“The streaming battle is first and foremost about content, and content that you ultimately will not be able to get in other places. The consumer will ultimately make some choices based on content they want and the exclusivity of the content. When you think about the four main engines of Disney Plus — Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars — those are four mega properties to have.”

Stephen Beck, cg42 Consulting

Star Wars content is potentially limitless. It is literally a universe of stories and legends, a galaxy of myths and mysteries just waiting to be told. Disney+ is the conduit to those stories, and the name “Skywalker” doesn’t even have to be said to make it Star Wars. Add to that the other Disney, Marvel and Pixar properties Disney owns and Disney+ becomes a one-stop entertainment planet killer.

Why Disney+ will succeed

Watch the preview of The Mandalorian and tell me you don’t want to binge the entire thing tonight. The success of Rogue One, arguably the best of the Disney-era Star Wars films, is because it was a rough and gritty “adult” Star Wars. The film retained the fun elements that make it Star Wars while adding the “adult” edginess of a thriller.

“A perfect future stand-alone Star Wars project will accomplish what Rogue One does: widen the universe, expand our knowledge of previous Star Wars films we love, while also telling a brand new story with characters we haven’t seen before.”

Erik Davis, managing editor for Fandango.com and Movies.com

First looks at The Mandalorian don’t just say it will be successful… it screams it. Then we have the Cassian/K-2SO series and the recently announced, fan favorite Obi-wan project. Blending beloved old characters with new ones is a recipe to be reckoned with. Throw in the new season of The Clone Wars and suddenly Star Wars fans have a lot to be thrilled about.

Reinventing Star Wars

Ask any fan this question, young and old, and you will likely get the same answer.

The question is: What do you want to see in a new Star Wars project? They won’t say special effects or Oscar-quality acting. Not social justice or gender representation.

The answer is always good writing and a good story. The effects are nice, and a large portion of fans have stated, some vehemently, that they do not care about the politics or SJW undertones woven into Star Wars. They just want a good story.

A new trilogy is slated for 2022, reportedly being written by former GoT showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff. The current rumor is that they will give us three films set in another fan favorite era, the Old Republic. However, their newly inked Netflix deal could torpedo that plan, limiting the duo to writing just one of the new trilogy films. We’ll be watching this one closely.

Disney+ debuts in November of 2019. Here’s hoping the quantity is accompanied by the quality.

Source: Business Insider