TheStar Warsfilms and TV shows are known for being grand epics set in space, anda lot of fans of the franchise take it quite seriously. There are comedic moments here and there inStar Wars, and most of the movies have a tone that leans towards the lighter side, but in general,Star Warsis very self-serious. This isn’t inherently a bad thing, but if every entry in a franchise takes itself very seriously, every film and show starts to feel too similar tonally.
It would be really interesting to seeStar Warsacknowledge and lean into the inherent fun and silliness of the world they’ve created. Yes, these stories are about legacy and the hero’s journey and saving the whole galaxy from destruction, so a highly comedic tone might feel out of place. But perhapsit’s time forStar Warsto tell a new kind of storythat has fun with this universe that’s been created and doesn’t take itself overly seriously.
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The original trilogy seems to be pretty good at balancing their epic story with comedic moments to lighten the tension, and because these movies were the origins of this universe, the fact that the films took themselves seriously worked really well. Theprequels and sequels, however, are where some of the tonal problems come in, and where it starts to become more obvious that perhapsStar Warsas a franchise takes itself a little too seriously.
One criticism of the prequels is the scripts, which include a lot of speeches and lines that are very dramatic and feel silly. Theprequels tried to ride the line of having these almost overly dramatic momentswhile trying to bring some comedy in, and it led to neither approach really working. The sequels faced a similar issue, where they tried to lean into comedy more for the current movie-going audience, but still fell back into patterns of too much self-seriousness, particularly inThe Rise of Skywalker. Perhaps it works for some fans, but the overly serious nature of a lot ofStar Warsfans feels silly when you look at what’s on the screen and remember that though they’re touching on important and relevant themes, it’s stilla fictional franchise about space battles and laser swords.
That’s not to diminish the serious aspects of the story or to say thatStar Warsis ridiculous by any means, but it would really be to the benefit of the franchise if they leaned into the fun of the universe. If you look at other franchises like Marvel, for example, some of their most successful stories are the ones that lean into the fun and the overall comic book nature of the stories.
Thor: Ragnarokis a great example of this, as it has stakes and serious moments (and good character development) but it’s bright and fun and doesn’t take itself seriously, which is one of the reasons why it’s so memorable and beloved by MCU fans. Taika Waititi, who directedThor: Ragnarok, is set to direct aStar Warsmovie in the future, and it would be really great to see him bring a similar directing style to thatStar Warsentry.Thor: Ragnarokrevived the MCU in a way, and so maybeWaititi’sStar Warswill bring something fresh and new to the tablethat this franchise desperately needs.
Perhaps one of the ways thatStar Warscan lean into and work with the more ridiculous aspects of their world is bycentering the story on common people rather than the Skywalkers. How do everyday people in this universe feel about all of the constant battles and lightsaber duels between the Sith and Jedi? There’s likely some great humor to be found if theStar Warsfilmmakers looked to more of an outside perspective. It would also be great ifStar Warslet their main characters be funny, rather than just a typical hero or everyman. Think about it: the main hero of aStar Warsfilm rarely gets to have the fun, quippy lines - those are reserved for the side characters. It would be a lot easier for the audience to connect to these main characters if they were allowed a little more personality, and if they were allowed to be funny.
It’s hard to find the balance between leaning into comedic elements (and not taking your story overly seriously) and overt goofiness that feels out of place in a space epic. Certain past attempts at silly moments and characters thatStar Warshas made (such as Jar Jar Binks) have not gone over particularly well with fans. There were even a lot of fans who were angry after the release ofThe Last Jediand felt that it was “disrespecting” the story by being overly flippant about elements ofStar Wars(like when Luke throws the lightsaber over his shoulder). PerhapsStar Warsis scared of alienating fans again by not taking the story super seriously. However,pandering to a certain group of fans in this wayis just holding the franchise back from telling really compelling and unique stories.
It’s possible to tell a deep, compelling story while also not taking everything too seriously, and in the future,Star Warsshould lean into that approach. In order to keep the franchise feeling fresh,Star Warsshould revolutionize their format a little bit so that their future movies and TV shows can feel really distinct and tell a lot of new, exciting stories, rather than just re-treading old ground.
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