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Disney Acquires LucasFilm for $4.05 billion, Episode 7 in 2015, 8 and 9 to Follow, New Film Every 2-3 Years — Page 4

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Disney does spend a good deal of time and effort in restoring their films. Just count on Star Wars costing 2 times what it's worth in future releases.

"The other versions will disappear. Even the 35 million tapes of Star Wars out there won’t last more than 30 or 40 years. A hundred years from now, the only version of the movie that anyone will remember will be the DVD version [of the Special Edition], and you’ll be able to project it on a 20’ by 40’ screen with perfect quality. I think it’s the director’s prerogative, not the studio’s to go back and reinvent a movie." - George Lucas

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SilverWook said: ...there is a precedent for a creator to step back while someone else takes the controls. The amount of input Gene actually had on the later Trek sequels has been debated in fan circles.

Yeah, it occurred to me that Gene's influence after TMP was still quite strong. 

I'm not sure exactly what to make of this news yet.

ADigitalMan said:

Would you like the brick I just crapped???

Wow!  ADM still posts here. :)

 

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pittrek said:

WHAT THE FUCK ???

My response exactly. He finally did it, and sold out because no one knew what to do with the company any longer. What else was there to do other than the day to day operations? Better to hand it off to Disney and also keep the industry giants of ILM/Skywalker Sound running self sufficiently.

adywan said:

At first i was quite excited that there now may be a chance we could see a restored version of the OUT, but then realised that Disney owning the rights to the Star Wars franchise will probably spell the end of anything fan created as their lawyers will be ready to pounce

My fear. This could easily come to pass.

The main question is still why?, but the idea of sequels is one that I really doubt-at least in the OOT sense. What remains to be seen is how Disney will decide to milk the franchise.

 

I can't help but find this extremely sad news. Despite my ever-growing dislike for what they did, Lucasfilm was always built by industry outsiders into a self-sufficient legend. It was the "F*** you, I made THX 1138!" mantra that kept a certain spirit of individualism alive. Now the Jedi are all but extinct.

VADER!? WHERE THE HELL IS MY MOCHA LATTE? -Palpy on a very bad day.
“George didn’t think there was any future in dead Han toys.”-Harrison Ford
YT channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/DamnFoolIdealisticCrusader

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ratpack1961 said:

George has been absolutely lying for 10 plus years to us.

Here.

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Alexrd: Link doesn't work...

I wonder what affect this will have on the live-action Star Wars tv series Lucas has been working on. I'm guessing most of the first season episodes of that have already been shot.

The Star Wars trilogy. There can be only one.

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Pixar makes bettter CGI than ILM, so that's a mild plus.

This doesn't get my hopes up about the OOT. Disney has a decent track record with re-releasing their live-action films, but nothing terribly outstanding.

Their animated films are a much worse story. Song of the South is a no-show. Deems Taylor's voice replaced in Fantasia. Degraining and screwed-up colours in the classics.

They DO love their preservation, though. I read that they backed up ALL of their old film elements...

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haha. what are the chances of a Joss Whedon Star Wars film?

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New update via Digital Bits:

UPDATE – 3 PM: Here are new and updated details on this deal from the official Disney investors’ conference call this afternoon:

  • Deal signed and announced earlier today – includes Star Wars franchise and all Lucasfilm operating businesses.
  • Indiana Jones franchise rights ARE also included in this deal.
  • First project under the joint under Disney/Lucas partnership will be Star Wars: Episode 7 in 2015, followed by Episode 8 and Episode 9.
  • Disney purchased “extensive and detailed” treatment for at least Episode 7 (and possibly Episodes 8 and 9 as well) as part of this deal which they “feel very good about.”
  • Disney long term plan is to release a new live-action Star Wars film every 2-3 years – films may eventually explore entire 20,000 year time-span of the franchise.
  • Lucas will serve as creative consultant on new Star Wars films. Kathleen Kennedy will executive produce.
  • Kennedy will serve as Lucasfilm president, reporting to Bob Iger at Disney.
  • Disney plans to expand Star Wars brand into many new product categories and internationally.
  • Star Wars brand will also be expanded into Disney parks, games and TV businesses.
  • Deal was 50% cash and 50% stock – $4.05 billion
  • Disney believes Lucasfilm value is comparable to value of Marvel, but valuation is only based on Star Wars alone – other Lucasfilm intellectual properties are in addition to this.

Whew! Stay tuned…

Dear god. And the fact that there was an actual EP. VII treatment included says volumes.

Star Wars on the goddamn Disney Channel. Can my day get any worse???

VADER!? WHERE THE HELL IS MY MOCHA LATTE? -Palpy on a very bad day.
“George didn’t think there was any future in dead Han toys.”-Harrison Ford
YT channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/DamnFoolIdealisticCrusader

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I am not sure why anyone really cares what Disney does with his films and any future films. All I care about is that the OUT is released in 1080. Aside from that they can do what they want, the legacy is already ruined you cant mess it up anymore than it currently is. Just give us the OUT!!!

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Dunedain said:

Alexrd: Link doesn't work...

Fixed.

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I think Fox retains control over any distribution of the existing movies, so if the originals were to be done at last, maybe they'd handle it, not Disney?

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So, with Disney now in charge will we finally get the OUT on Blu?

I am fluent in over six million forms of procrastination.
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ben_danger said:

haha. what are the chances of a Joss Whedon Star Wars film?

3,720 to 1. Hopefully...

ADigitalMan said:

So, with Disney now in charge will we finally get the OUT on Blu?

With a "nice Disney castle" intro right before the movie.

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It would likely be a cooperative effort, because LFL owned the materials and Fox was the rightful distributor. The trick is convincing someone to put the $ in. That has always been the issue, and the only real hope besides convincing a company bigwig was to convince a lesser project to be funded, such as a Criterion one-off using best available print materials.

In an industry that has let a Hitchcock masterpiece (The 1956 The Man Who Knew Too Much) fall into absolute disrepair due to simple negligence over a period of 28 years, there is virtually no hope of an OOT restoration.

VADER!? WHERE THE HELL IS MY MOCHA LATTE? -Palpy on a very bad day.
“George didn’t think there was any future in dead Han toys.”-Harrison Ford
YT channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/DamnFoolIdealisticCrusader

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Baronlando said:

I think Fox retains control over any distribution of the existing movies, so if the originals were to be done at last, maybe they'd handle it, not Disney?

 So does this mean we've seen the last of the Fox introed films? The fanfair was such a part of the experience.

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Holy sh*t snacks. This seemed to come out of freaking nowhere.

Call me a pessimist, but I won't believe that this is good for any of us until I'm holding the OOT in my hands. Disney are the WORST when it comes to Copyright infringement - they were the main people responsible for making sure it was extended to 70 years plus life back in the late 90s.

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captainsolo: Except there are a lot of Star Wars fans that would instantly buy a fully restored Blu-ray set like that. They could make a nice collector's set of it. That would make money for sure and gets lots of attention for Star Wars.

The Star Wars trilogy. There can be only one.

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Sadly, just because there's a market for it doesn't mean it will happen. The sales of the GOUT alone should have been cause enough for such a release, and it could have easily been done by Criterion as a niche DVD/BD issue working from archival LFL materials even in a 2K workflow. The sales would have been astronomical and everyone could have gotten the necessary percentages.

My own take on Disney's newest addition to their holiday video schedule:

Upcoming for the holiday season...Disney Entertainment presents the long awaited cherished favorite: THE STAR WARS HOLIDAY SPECIAL on Blu-ray Hi-def! With over 15 hours of redundant bonus features including Disney Channel cast members performing their own cover versions of all your favorite scene from the award-winning Special, such as inane unintelligible Wookiee masturbation!!Newly remastered from the original 1978 5 year old fan made beta tapes, remastered in breathtaking DTS-HDMA 12.2 surround sound!

VADER!? WHERE THE HELL IS MY MOCHA LATTE? -Palpy on a very bad day.
“George didn’t think there was any future in dead Han toys.”-Harrison Ford
YT channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/DamnFoolIdealisticCrusader

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I remain cautiously optimistic. As I see it, any way this goes, it'll be better than the franchises' dead-end direction Lucas was lead it to.

 

Although, when episode VII come out, I'm really gonna miss the 20th century Fox fanfare at the beginning.

"Han and Indy wear different clothes... they couldn't possibly be the same person." - Harrison Ford

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R.I.P Lucasfilm 1971-2012 :(

Grooaoohumpf
(scuze my english)
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EyeShotFirst said:


Disney does spend a good deal of time and effort in restoring their films. Just count on Star Wars costing 2 times what it's worth in future releases.

They're also very hit-and-miss. Disney is infamous for modifying their films' color palettes to appeal to more modern audiences/children. And there's no grain to be found anywhere.

This is the end of most hope for a restoration of the OUT IMO.

I can't wait for Super Bombad Racing: the Series, though. That shit will be intense.

A Goon in a Gaggle of 'em