Rian Johnson reflects on The Last Jedi’s divisive reception
Now that Rian Johnson is premiering his third film in the Knives Out series, a franchise that has been positively received by both critics and audiences alike, it would seem that he is pretty firmly out of movie jail after Star Wars: The Last Jedi garnered a divisive response from fandom. After indies like Brick, a sci-fi actioner like Looper, helming a popular Breaking Bad episode, and the Knives Out success, The Last Jedi is a unique spot on his resume as the film still collected positive reviews from critics and was a moneymaker at the box office.
The Wake Up Dead Man director was recently profiled by The Hollywood Reporter, and he would look back on the turbulent era surrounding his Star Wars chapter. Johnson reflected, “We made that movie in this beautiful, fearless little bubble, and the reality is, once you dive in and start doing the creative work, there isn’t a lot of room in your head for the notion of external pressure.” He remembers a time when he had engaged with fans on social media, “Before I made the Star Wars movie, when I was very, very active on Twitter, if someone said anything mean about me, I felt like I had to fix that.” He has since become more selective in his responses, “Having grown up as a Star Wars fan, I think the love and the hate are two sides of the same coin, and it’s all passion for what the thing is. That doesn’t mean it’s easy to deal with when it’s coming at you in a personal way.”
Prior to its release, The Last Jedi had Lucasfilm execs excited and offered Johnson the chance to stick around in the galaxy far, far away. It had been announced long ago that he would be helming his own trilogy, but those plans have had very little materialize. However, even though Johnson is finding solace in his whodunnits, he hasn’t totally departed the franchise, “A part of my brain will always be in Star Wars. It’s so much a part of me and the way I think.”
Daniel Craig returns as detective Benoit Blanc in Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, with Thomas Haden Church (Spider-Man 3), Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men), Josh O’Connor (The Crown), Cailee Spaeny (Priscilla), Andrew Scott (Ripley), Kerry Washington (Little Fires Everywhere), Daryl McCormack (Good Luck to You, Leo Grande), Mila Kunis (That 70s Show), Glenn Close (Fatal Attraction), and Jeremy Renner (Avengers: Endgame) – whose likeness was featured on a hot sauce in Glass Onion – making up the rest of the primary cast.
The streamer had scheduled a two-week theatrical release for the film, which will start on November 26. Then, the movie will stream globally on the platform on December 12.
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