Legends Disney appoints a group to determine a new, official Star Wars canon

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

The Expanded Universe as we knew it will soon be no more. Disney has created a special committee whose job it will be to figure out what is and isn't part of a complete Star Wars canon — meaning all the EU material created over the years will be judged, and either become official or deemed invalid.

Furthermore, this means at some point all new Star Wars spin-offs will matter, because they will all be official. I don't know how I feel about that.

The Story Group, as its called, includes Leland Chee, who has been Lucasfilm's "Keeper of the Holocron," the in-house database of everything Star Wars. According to The Hollywood Reporter:

"Does that mean all projects from here on out that Story Group touch are canon? Or is there still a G- T- C- etc on new stuff"

"More so than ever, the canon field will serve us internally simply for classification rather than setting hierarchy."

We obviously don't know what will be kept and what will be lost, but now we know that instead of separating the official Star Wars universe from the Expanded Universe, we're going to get one consistent (hopefully) universe, where every story told is official, whether it be a movie, a comic, a book, or a videogame. I would guess that Disney would cherry pick a few things from the material that's come before — probably big stuff like the Clone Wars cartoon, maybe some of the Knights of the Old Republic material — but I can't imagine them burdening themselves down with too much old material, as most of it would merely inhibit the new stories they want to tell (and products they want to sell). I also can't imagine they'd really want any of the Star Wars books set after the movies, as those will almost certainly get in their way of their sequels.

But who knows? Do you guys have any votes for what should stay and what should go? What would you most hate to lose?

http://io9.com/disney-appoints-a-group-to-determine-a-new-official-st-1497893812

I bet some of these decisions will piss some people off

 

[KevanG]

This should be interesting. I'm sure we'll lose a lot of good stories that would not longer be canon but it'll be neat to have a solid timeline although the hardcore ones will be up in arms as soon as anything is changed no matter how remote.

 

[Gianakin_]

Just tell me which stuff to sell! And be clear, unlike DC with the New 52!

 

[Tanin]

Bring Chewie back! *crosses fingers*
Han shot first!!!

 

[KevanG]

Nah, leave Chewie dead. He died in the most badass manner possible. You take down so many enemies on your own then they drop a moon on you to kill you. What do you do? Run? Look for safety? No. You roar at it and basically say 'COME GET SOME MOTHER******!'

They won't of course because he's a staple character of the OT. Nothing they could possibly do in anything else could top that.

 

[Gabe99]

From Variety:
NOVEMBER 8, 2012'
Disney sees Q4 profits rise, touts Lucasfilm integration - Bob Iger says acquisition of 'Star Wars' brand will 'further fuel Disney's creative engine'

When asked whether Disney could handle another major brand in its portfolio, Iger wasn't concerned about fitting Lucasfilm's assets into the mix.

"Six years after the Pixar acquisition, there's proof this brand's been handled effectively," Iger said. "We've demonstrated our ability to be ambidexterous. The 'Star Wars' brand doesn't need much help but benefits greatly from the release of a film. When we take over distribution of their films and are the owner of the brand, we're more focused on growing the brand than the third-party distributor was."

While 20th Century Fox still controls distribution rights for the "Star Wars" films that were made and any re-releases in 3D, "We did not factor in any need to acquire rights back from News Corp.," Iger said. "We may choose to explore that, but all value is going-forward value."

Toward that end, Iger said, "Lucas product will be co-branded with Disney's name on it."

That includes consumer products, where Disney saw Marvel's characters, including Spider-Man, helping to propel the division, which saw sales increase 7% for the year to $3.3 billion and profits rise 15% to $937 million. For the quarter, revenue was up 8% to $883 million as profits surged 29% to $267 million.

Iger said he sees the Lucasfilm acquisition as a "great opportunity to infuse our stores with 'Star Wars' merchandise and grow our online business."

io9 4/04/13:
Is Disney about to destroy the Star Wars Expanded Universe Altogether?



The Wrap May 15, 2013:
How the Battle Over 'Star Trek' Rights Killed J.J. Abrams' Grand Ambitions
The franchise's licensing and merchandising rights are split between CBS and Paramount which created headaches for the multihyphenate's production company Bad Robot

Abrams' ambitions to create a multi-platform film franchise will find a more natural home at Disney, analysts and industry experts tell TheWrap. As successful as "Star Trek" has been, few franchises match the profitability and cultural prominence of George Lucas' space opera, which would be difficult for any director to pass up.

“Disney has always been oriented to multi-platform revenue stream situations,” Seth Willenson, a film library valuations expert, told TheWrap.

Moreover, Willenson notes that Abrams, who has a deal that is believed to include creative and profit participation in "Star Wars" inspired merchandise and spin-offs, will have more control in shaping the legacy of the Skywalker clan than he would have had with developing side projects for the "Star Trek" crew. Unlike with "Star Trek," with its rights split between Paramount and CBS, Disney owns the rights to “Star Wars” outright thanks to its $4 billion purchase of Lucasfilm last year.

"The derivative rights situation on 'Star Trek' is complicated because you’re dealing with cross-company cultures, so it makes it harder to implement a grand plan," Willenson said.

As for Disney's grand "Star Wars" plan, it's sounding an awful lot like the one Abrams once envisioned for "Star Trek." There will be television properties, theme park rides and spin-off films all centered around the new trilogy that Abrams will oversee.

It's a page borrowed from Disney's exploitation of the Marvel comic books and if it works out, it should make Abrams very rich indeed.

SPOILERS
CBM:
STAR WARS Movies Rumored To "Redefine Longform Storytelling" By Connecting Everything
According to a new report, Star Wars Episode VII is set to "redefine longform storytelling" with the arc of the new trilogy already set and the story set to weave through books, comics, games and more, all to make the Star Wars Universe more cohesive and engrossing.


SPOILERS
BAD:
How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love STAR WARS Again
Devin may have had his road to Damascus moment when it comes to STAR WARS.

 

[iamlegend]

Nah, leave Chewie dead. He died in the most badass manner possible. You take down so many enemies on your own then they drop a moon on you to kill you. What do you do? Run? Look for safety? No. You roar at it and basically say 'COME GET SOME MOTHER******!'

They won't of course because he's a staple character of the OT. Nothing they could possibly do in anything else could top that.

I'd wager that nearly everything that comes after ROTJ in the EU is going to be erased. Especially NJO.

The EU was a fun era, but it's time has come. I'm largely OK with it. I'm not a purist, so I don't mind thinking of it as an alternate timeline.

Well, that, and I think the large majority of the last 10 years or so of EU material has been total garbage.