In the odd turns the Star Wars franchise has taken under Disney, it has done the unthinkable: made past cast members miss George Lucas.
That’s the sentiment shared by actor Simon Pegg in The Adam Buxton Podcast as he talked about the direction of Star Wars. Pegg was famous for criticizing Lucas’ prequels, in particular the character of Jar Jar Binks, and lauded the decision to sell the franchise to Disney. But now he is singing a very different tune.
Interestingly enough, Pegg had a minor role in Star Wars: The Force Awakens as Unkar Plutt, so he has been a part of the new trilogy and is a close friend of director J.J. Abrams. Here are Pegg’s full comments on Lucas.
I must admit, watching the last Star Wars film [The Last Jedi], the overriding feeling I got when I came out was, ‘I miss George Lucas.’ For all the complaining that I’d done about him in the prequels, there was something amazing about his imagination. I do feel like his voice is missing from the current ones.
Judging from his comments, Pegg is honing in on Star Wars: The Last Jedi as the film that sent him to this current stance. Director Rian Johnson went in a polarizing direction that did away with many of the staples Lucas established in the original and prequel Star Wars trilogies.
With that precedent set, Pegg’s comments are much more understandable. For all the criticism Lucas received, he was always ardent in his focus on the Jedi way but that was undone by The Last Jedi. Hopefully Pegg’s good buddy J.J. Abrams can bring some of that back in Star Wars: Episode IX.
