Screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan has been an intergral part of Star Wars‘ identity ever since he was brought on board to script The Empire Strikes Back. Alongside the late Irvin Kershner, he helped elevate the franchise to become something far more nuanced and powerful than even George Lucas could have imagined. His work on both Empire and Return of the Jedi are intergral to those movies’ success, and his body of work also includes classics like Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Big Chill and Body Heat.
When it was announced that Kasdan was being brought back into the fold to co-write the script to the hotly anticipated The Force Awakens with J.J Abrams, a lot of fans breathed a sigh of relief that they were bringing in someone with a proven track record with the franchise. It was also revealed this year that Kasdan was writing another Star Wars script with his son Jon: a spin-off focusing on a young Han Solo set to be directed by The LEGO Movie‘s Phil Lord & Chris Miller.
But after these two projects, Kasdan has announced he’s stepping away from the galaxy far, far away. Kasdan told a German newspaper. “I have now made four Star Wars movies. That’s more than enough,” he also added that he initially wasn’t keen on writing the Solo film, but was encouraged by his family to move forward with the project. Abrams has recently been very positive about his collaboration with Kasdan on The Force Awakens, comparing the working relationship to “taking an extended master class” in filmmaking.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens opens this December, whilst the untitled Han Solo film will be released on May 25 2018.
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