'I Had 3 More Star Wars to Make' — George Lucas Reveals What He Left Behind When He Retired From Making Movies

George Lucas originally planned to create three more Star Wars movies before ultimately deciding to retire. However, Disney took over the franchise after purchasing it from him for $4 billion in 2012. Over the years, Lucas has discussed having nebulous ideas for a sequel trilogy, but nothing was set in motion. He has made conflicting statements about having ideas for a third trilogy, but now claims he had a desire to complete the Skywalker Saga, which consists of nine main films.

Lucas chose to retire from making movies in order to focus on his newly opened Lucas Museum of Narrative Art. He explained that he had to make a choice between creating the additional Star Wars films and working on the museum project. Lucas also mentioned that he was concerned about the time he had left and the advancements in digital technology that he wanted to apply to the movie industry.

Early plans for the sequel trilogy were altered, with ideas of a sister for Luke Skywalker and an ultimate confrontation with Emperor Palpatine being incorporated into Return of the Jedi. By the 1980s, Lucas realized the magnitude of the story and decided to stick to the main trilogy.

In the 1990s, Lucas reportedly became disenchanted with the prospect of continuing the Star Wars saga further after nine years of production on the prequel trilogy. In the 2000s, after hearing Harrison Ford joke about a potential return for the third trilogy when the stars were older, Lucas shared his thoughts on the matter. He expressed his skepticism about the feasibility, noting that all parties involved would also be in their 70s.

When discussing the third trilogy, Lucas mentioned that it was eventually made by Disney, incorporating some of his original ideas, such as the story being set thirty years after Return of the Jedi, with older versions of Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher returning. He also shared plans for Luke's role to be more ethereal, potentially existing on another plane of existence.

Finally, Lucas defended his constant modifications to the original trilogy, which has undergone four rounds of changes since its release.