Despite closing the book on his career-defining Star Wars franchise some time ago and finally bringing the long-gestating Red Tails to fruition earlier this year, George Lucasâ passion for his craft burns bright as ever. In fact, heâs looking to take his work in a fresh, âexperimentalâ direction. The good news for anyone who hasnât really dug his post-Return of the Jedi work: you wonât have to see it. Empire Magazine had a quick chat with the producer/director for their latest print issue, during which they posed the standard âSo, whatâs next?â query. Lucasâ unexpected answer: heâs leaving Lucasfilm behind to make movies in his garageâ¦using a hammer and saw, apparently. Hit the jump to read what the filmmaker has planned for himself in his own words.Hereâs what Lucas had to say (From EmpireOnline via /Film):
"I'm moving away from the company, I'm moving away from all my businesses, I'm finishing all my obligations and I'm going to retire to my garage with my saw and hammer and build hobby movies. I've always wanted to make movies that were more experimental in nature, and not have to worry about them showing in movie theatres."
We donât know what this means exactly. But given the manâs skillset and apparent areas of interest, one assumes these âhobby moviesâ will focus on VFX trickery while dispensing with character and narrative, which his recent work hasnât shown much of a penchant for, anyway.
And thatâs it. After one of the most lucrative, influential careers in history, this American legend plans to live out his days puttering around the garage, trying to keep busy, raving about his boys Harrison and Ewan to politely-nodding neighbours. Though keep in mind that George Lucasâ âgarageâ may very well contain a fully functioning podracer bay and bantha stable.
So what does everybody think? Are you ok with Lucas hanging it up? Any interest in checking out his hobby flicks? I know I wouldnât mind taking a peek, especially if it involves the use of a hammer; the guy can certainly conjure up a mean visual and itâd be interesting to see him wade back into practical SFX.
Iâll also be curious to see if he stays in the game long enough to usher in ambitious live-action series Star Wars: Underworld, a project that fellow Lucasfilm producer Rick McCallum described as âThe Empire Strikes Back on steroidsâ when he spoke with Steve earlier this year.