Kathleen Kennedy has opened up about her years as president of Lucasfilm after stepping down this week, including her experience working with Rian Johnson in the highly divisive Star Wars: The Last Jedi. According to Kennedy, the filmmaker stepped back from the franchise due to other work commitments, but he also got "spooked" by the "online negativity" he received back in 2017.
"Once he made the Netflix deal and went off to start doing the Knives Out films, that has occupied a huge amount of his time," Kennedy told Deadline, using director Shawn Levy – who is helming the upcoming Star Wars: Starfighter – as another example. "That’s the other thing that happens here. After Shawn and I started talking about Star Wars, Stranger Things kicks in and he was completely consumed for a while by that. That's what happened with Rian."
She added: "And then I do believe he got spooked by the online negativity. I think Rian made one of the best Star Wars movies. He's a brilliant filmmaker and he got spooked. This is the rough part. When people come into this space, I have every filmmaker and actors say to me, 'What's going to happen?' They're a little scared."
Asked about her approach to prepare the newcomers for any backlash online, Kennedy explained: "I'm honest, especially with the women that come into this space because they unfairly get targeted. I don't try to sugarcoat it. And I emphasize that it's a very small group of people, with loud megaphones. I truly do not believe that it's the majority of the fans. And I think we're also in this weird world of where bots can affect things."
"You have to develop a tough skin," she continued. "That is exactly right. That's what you have to do. You can't make it go away. All we can do is put our heads down and do the work and believe that we're doing the best we can, telling the best story we can. And if somebody gets really nervous about it and doesn’t want to do it, I say, then don't do it because I can't tell you this won’t happen."
Kennedy has recently stepped down as president of Lucasfilm after 14 years, with chief creative officer Dave Filoni and general manager Lynwen Brennan taking over as the leaders of the Star Wars franchise.
For more from a galaxy far, far away, check out our guide to all the upcoming Star Wars movies and shows.
