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Online critics want to remake 'The Last Jedi' — and Rian Johnson is all for it

Daisy Ridley as Rey and Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker in <i>Star Wars: The Last Jedi.</i> (Photo: Lucasfilm)
Daisy Ridley as Rey and Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. (Photo: Lucasfilm)

Star Wars: The Last Jedi was acclaimed by critics and earned $1.3 billion worldwide (including $620 million here at home), and yet some die-hard fans continue to express their oh-so-outraged discontent over it online — including in ways nasty enough to compel co-star Kelly Marie Tran (i.e., Rose Tico) to leaving social media over what seemed to be intolerant harassment. Earlier this week, a few of these persistent detractors took such complaints to a new level, posting a request for help in remaking the blockbuster sequel. And that, in turn, led to expert trolling from high-profile individuals like the film’s writer/director.

Yesterday, the aptly titled @RemakeTheLastJedi Twitter account made the following announcement-by-way-of-plea to fellow Last Jedi haters:

Rian Johnson attends the <em>Star Wars: The Last Jedi</em> — <em>The Director and The Jedi</em> SXSW documentary premiere at the Paramount Theatre on March 12, 2018, in Austin, Tex. (Photo: Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)
Rian Johnson attends the Star Wars: The Last JediThe Director and The Jedi SXSW documentary premiere at the Paramount Theatre on March 12, 2018, in Austin, Tex. (Photo: Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)

As their official website indicates, these producers are soliciting “pledges” (which total $22 million, but require no financial commitment and are thus highly questionable) to help create this fan-pleasing opus, which will ostensibly be made by Disney once it supposedly realizes the benefits of redoing one of the franchise’s biggest hits. Suffice it to say, that plan makes little sense. And the campaign was thus predictably met with mockery from many corners, including from writer/director Rian Johnson. The filmmaker has previously fought back against extreme trolls (as have his co-stars and supporters), and today, he made it clear that he’d love to see these amateur auteurs try their hand at improving upon his series installment:

None other than Seth Rogen also chimed in, expressing what sounded like genuine bafflement over this entire scheme, which — as he made clear in a series of comments posted in response to the above Tweet — doesn’t make much logistical sense, thanks to the fact that these individuals don’t own the rights to the very material they’re trying to use.

As the Remake The Last Jedi’s post says, “This isn’t a joke,” so if you want to participate in their project, you know now where to send your hard-earned “pledges.”