It's not new, Lucas has always been concerned about cost, this is from 78-79:
GL: ... In movies give somebody $150 million and fifty years to make a film, and the odds are good that they'll make a professional movie. The real challenge is to do it for a minimum amount of money in a reasonable amount of time. When I look at films I can tell one that cost $30 million, but if you can make a film that looks as good but only cost $15 million, then you've accomplished something.