In recent years,Star Warshas truly taken to heart the idea of exploring the galaxy beyond the Jedi, and it’s helped to prove that the Jedi are only a small part of this vast, compelling universe. This isn’t just something that’s seen by viewers, though, as we’ve gotten the opportunity to follow more grounded characters such asThe Mandalorian’s Din DjarinandAndor’s Cassian Andor. This is also something that’s understood by even the greatest of the franchise’s creatives.
Bryce Dallas Howard, known inStar Warsfor her work onThe Mandalorian,The Book of Boba Fett, andStar Wars: Skeleton Crew, words it perfectly in an interview withPodcrushed. Discussing the appeal of George Lucas’Star Warscreation, Howard emphasizes howthere’s “something for everyone.“There’s both the “supernatural” element with the Jedi and the Sith, and there’s also the “dangerous world” that follows gangsters, bounty hunters, and the like.
Bryce Dallas Howard: The thing that’s cool about Star Wars, from my perspective, is that it seems like, at least if you think about it from a place of genre, there’s something for everyone. George’s influences were spaghetti westerns, Kurosawa, Flash Gordon, so there’s a real, like if you like movies where racing is happening, that happens in Star Wars. If you like movies where it’s supernatural and people have supernatural powers and all that kind of stuff, that happens in Star Wars. If you want like gangsters and a kind of dangerous world and people doing seedy things to one another but having fun and it’s a little bit juicy, that’s in Star Wars. So it has so much humanity in it. Andit really reflects planet earth without being so specific that it’s a commentary. So I think that if you get into it, you relate to it in ways that are perhaps a little surprising.
Howard goes on to discuss this from a more individualistic view as well, narrowing in on the characters inStar Warsand how they’re “messy, dirty, real people.” It’s the Jedi who reflect a stoicism, necessitated by their religion, butbeyond that, people are just that: people. These people are all bound together by the Force, which, according to Howard, is “so personal,” as she goes on to elaborate that “anyone gets to kind of determine what [the Force] means for them.”
Bryce Dallas Howard: What I love about Star Wars is that it is like messy, dirty, real people. You know it’s not, until you get to kind of like more of the Jedi where there is a formality, there is stoicism, there is all of that, but because of the stories, we know what’s also underneath that and the cost of that. So, I think,when it comes to the lore, there’s something for everyone. And in particular, as it pertains to the Force, I mean that’s so personal, like what is the Force? You know, George would say the Force is God, but anyone gets to kind of determine what that means for them. But I really,I believe in the Force. Like, I believe in it. And I find it strange that I can’t move things. …But I believe in Star Wars as if it’s real. It feels very honest and playful and entertaining. It doesn’t take itself very seriously.
What Bryce Dallas Howard’s Star Wars Take Means For The Franchise
There’s Definitely An Appeal To Star Wars For Anyone Now
Howard, as someone who’s now dug into three differentStar Warsproperties that don’t heavily feature the Jedi, totally understands thatStar Warshas certainly learned to appeal to just about anyone with the greater franchise. This is especially meaningful in light of the recent success ofAndorseason 2; whether people are seeking that boots-on-the-ground approach or something as fantastical and supernatural as the Jedi in theStar Warsprequel trilogy, they have options in this galaxy far, far away.
Star Wars Really Is An Immortal Type Of Franchise
There Are Endless Storytelling Angles & Possibilities
What Howard’s words here really prove is thatStar Warshas made itself into an immortal franchise. Because there are such endless ways to tell stories in this galaxy, and each of them has resonated so much with fans of all kinds,there’s no reason whyStar Warscan’t continue to endure for as long as it wants to. There’s no set genre or approach to any specificStar Warsstories, and that helps to keep things fresh no matter how far we get from the franchise’s initial debut.
It can be argued that not everyStar Warsproject ever created has landed, especially some of the more experimental endeavors, but that doesn’t mean it won’t ever work in the future. Right now, thenextStar Warsmoviewill be the franchise’s first to be based off a TV show, withThe Mandalorian and Grogucontinuing the story of Din Djarin and Grogu. This will bring the TV show’s beloved Western style to the big screen, exemplifying Howard’s words about howStar Warsreally does have something for everyone.
The Mandalorian and Grogu
