Arguably crucial, game-changing occasion within the historical past of Star Wars storytelling occurred 10 years in the past immediately. On April 25, 2014, Lucasfilm introduced that the Star Wars Expanded Universe was being pushed apart. All future storytelling can be a part of the identical, cohesive canon, and the EU tales followers knew and beloved through the years would change into disconnected “Legends.”
You may learn the official announcement at this hyperlink, and doing so with 10 years of hindsight is sort of mind-boggling. Within the decade since, Star Wars followers have been so inundated with new tales, all of which join, we virtually take as a right that Lucasfilm needed to make the aware determination to take all these earlier tales, transfer them to the facet, and clearly outline that every one tales shifting forward had been formally a part of the identical world. Plus, on the identical time, there’s specific acknowledgment that parts of the EU would, may, and needs to be borrowed.
Two years previous to this, when information broke that Disney was shopping for Lucasfilm and new Star Wars films had been coming, one of many first questions followers had was “Are they simply going to remake Inheritor to the Empire?” That’s how in style these EU tales had change into. Within the a long time since their debut, EU tales had principally change into headcanon for followers. Despite the fact that a lot of what was written by totally different authors over totally different mediums didn’t all 100% line up, it didn’t matter. Followers picked and selected what they wished to consider and it was all high quality. This information particularly made it clear that wasn’t going to be occurring anymore. Episode VII wouldn’t be Inheritor to the Empire. Inheritor to the Empire was nothing. And but now, 10 years later, it sort of has began to come back again, with Grand Admiral Thrawn changing into the massive dangerous in an entire different Star Wars story.
One other side to contemplate is that whereas this information definitely made it appear as if there was no restrict to the scope of future Star Wars storytelling, most of that storytelling that’s occurred thus far has been largely contained. Some characters are older, some are youthful, however from 2014 to now, only a few tales have damaged out of a roughly 100-year interval of Star Wars historical past. That slowly began to alter with The Excessive Republic in 2021 and now, this yr it’ll lastly make its solution to dwell motion with The Acolyte, cementing it for everybody. However that’s a very long time.
Principally, it’s taken a decade for Star Wars to interrupt out of its mould and embrace the sort of big-swing, all-eras storytelling the EU supplied a long time earlier than. That might proceed additional too if (and that’s a giant “if” in relation to Star Wars films) James Mangold’s Daybreak of the Jedi film turns into a actuality. It’s virtually like, within the 10 years since erasing the EU, Star Wars has lastly made it round to only begin… redoing the EU once more. (Enjoyable facet be aware: it was revealed in 2018 one purpose all this occurred was as a result of the EU killed Chewbacca and the studio didn’t need to make a brand new film with out him.)
Why has it taken so lengthy for Star Wars to contemplate going out of the field? Ought to we simply be joyful that it’s lastly occurring? You can also’t assist however marvel what would’ve occurred if Lucasfilm went the fully reverse method. What if there was no tried and true canon? What if we simply bought new Star Wars tales just like the EU did them? Perhaps simply the flicks may’ve been contained? You additionally must keep in mind that, 10 years in the past, Star Wars changing into a TV-forward franchise by no means would’ve appeared believable, in order that’s an entire different angle.
And whereas the dialogue round Star Conflicts canon, the Expanded Universe, and extra rages on, there may be one truth we are able to all agree on. That dialogue actually kicked into gear 10 years in the past immediately. The place will it’s 10 years from now?
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