For years, George Lucas’ Star Wars films have been criticized for featuring casts filled with white men. Well, Lucas recently addressed that and rejected the criticism because most of the characters in the movie are alien.
During a conversation at the Cannes Film Festival ahead of receiving the festival’s honorary Palme d’Or, Lucas opened up about some of the negative commentary he’s received over the years.
Lucas explained: “They would say, ‘It’s all white men.’ Most of the people are aliens! The idea is you’re supposed to accept people for what they are, whether they’re big and furry or whether they’re green or whatever. The idea is all people are equal.”
Lucas went on to point out that the only beings in the Star Wars universe who were discriminated against were the robots.
He said: “That was a way of saying, you know, people are always discriminating against something and sooner or later, that’s what’s going to happen. I mean, we’re already starting with AI, saying, ‘Well, we can’t trust those robots.’”
Lucas went on to discuss the issue of race, saying: “In the first one, there were a few Tunisians who were dark, and in the second one I had Billy Williams, and the [prequels], which they were also criticizing, I had Sam Jackson. He wasn’t a scoundrel like Lando. He was one of the top Jedi.”
Lucas also weighed on the depiction of women in the Star Wars films, saying: “Who do you think the heroes are in these stories? What do you think Princess Leia was? She’s the head of the rebellion.
“She’s the one that’s taking this young kid who doesn’t know anything and this boisterous, I-know-everything guy who can’t do anything and trying to save the rebellion with these clowns … And it’s the same thing with Queen Amidala.”
He continued, “You can’t just put a woman in pants and expect her to be a hero. They can wear dresses, they can wear whatever they want. It’s their brains and their ability to think and plan and be logistical. That’s what the hero is.”
I guess these are some thoughts that Lucas has been wanting to get off of his chest. You may agree with him, you may disagree with him, but regardless of what you think, his original Star Wars films forever changed the film industry, and fans just love those movies!
Source: Variety
Joey Paur
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