Star Wars: Why Kathleen Kennedy couldn’t be fired in 2018 

Apologies for spotty and uneven audio quality. Recorded while in transit, on portable device.

The last Jedi is 100% of the reason I didn't go see Solo..

I'm more than willing to extend my boycott for 3 more years.

Does it bother anyone else that Rey is in possession of Luke and Anakin’s light saber?

"Franchise Fatigue" - yeah tell that to all the Marvel fans who are more than happy with 2-3 films per yr....

Star Wars is suffering from uninteresting stories, not franchise fatigue :)

The Last Jedi broke me as a fan. Solo was the first Star Wars movie that I did not see in the movie theaters since A New Hope. And I have no interest in seeing episode 9. Their so-called Trilogy isn't much of a Trilogy when every episode doesn't lead into or move the story of the next episode. I personally will not watch any more Star Wars movies with Kathleen Kennedy at the helm of LucasArts. And I know a lot of other people I feel just the same way as me and we are all lifetime fans of Star Wars

Let's make Episode IX bomb, folks. We need to defeat the Sith Lord of Lucasfilm.

Well, boycotting Star Wars for at least another 3 years I guess

There is no Star Wars overexposure, the new movies are just _bad._

Disney has failed to deliver on THE ONE thing fans wanted: Leia, Luke and Han together on screen one more time.

the best thing that can happen in episode 9 - luke wakes up and realizes, that the whole episode 8 was just a weird dream, induced by green milk. Wait...

the real problem is that they made bad movies that are easily forgettable, they alienated their fans and basically destroyed the series. never forget!!! never forgive!!!!

i didn’t go see “solo” because of my dissatisfaction with the last jedi. and that’s the real reason solo failed. not because of fatigue.

I'm still not bored of people making last jedi videos. lol

Compare "mary Sue" Rey to other screen heroines like Ellen Ripley and Sarah Conner. Ripley starts as a mid level officer to sole survivor in Alien, to reluctant consultant to bad ass take out the Queen warrior in Aliens. She experienced a road of hard lessons and rose to the top. Sarah Conner started out as a single aimless waitress to a princess in dismay, to the heroine who outsmarts the terminator and kills it. In her second film she's a trained and weathered bad ass in incarceration who does whatever it takes to keep her son Alive. Rey on the other hand starts of in hardship as a scrapper, but already exhibits amazing fighting prowess, can fly the Millenium Falcon better than any pilot in the series ever did despite most of her life in the sand, can repair it better than Han Solo, can outfight a trained sith... well you get the idea. She's a shit character who is preloaded with extreme skills over any other character. You never see her struggle and rise, just dance through the movies facing experiences and outdoing the boys. Rey is the creation of Kathleen Kennedy, a shallow ambitious executive who could never really cut it in creative storytelling and is a spineless vapid feminist. It's no surprise she gave JJ Abrams major hell in the first film and brought in Beta boy Rion Johnson to do whatever she wanted. This fucking cunt destroyed a multi billion dollar investment with her feminist hubris and desire to push a social agenda that most of us are just bored of. Talented stortytellers could bring Heroines into film that we all adored, while hacks like this wench could only produce a character that we despise.

Ultimately Kathy Kennedy was a terrible choice for CEO of lucasfilm, a decision that George Lucas made. She is NOT a Creative (she doesn't know SW), she's an Executive. I doubt she was a FAN before George gave her the job? Lucas hired her because of her Association with Spielberg (plain & simple) for over 35 yrs...period!!! She's an Executive Producer, nothing more...a SUIT!!! SW clearly lacks a single vision by (someone/anyone?) w/ a loving/deep knowledge of what is TRUE SW (a Feige for SW). Kathy can't serve 2 masters (she clearly isn't knowledgeable of & isn't serving SW)....She has been very clear almost from day one of pushing a FemiNazi agenda to remake Star Wars Into a Girl Power franchise. BS has to be called on anyone who isn't up to the job. It is obvious that she is Flying Blind when it comes to Star Wars, she's relying on other men who know Star Wars to actually create and direct the Star Wars films and content and in essence to decide the, present and future, for Star Wars. This is why the franchise seems so disjointed and ununified now, because every new film Kathy has a new man or Team come in that decides a new Direction, their own for their Star Wars film at that particular time, instead of a real knowledgeable CEO of Star Wars actually guiding the franchise and plotting a unified whole. In the case of JJ Abrams it went well, in the case of Rian Johnson and TLJ the result was wholy Un-Star Wars like and just strange. Rogue one unexpectedly turned out very well but only after much disruption and well the chaos of Solo was clear for everyone to see. Kathy's lack of knowledge of the Star Wars franchise has allowed it to derail and have much faith in it lost by the core fan base. I believe Kathy's three-year extension was really a road map to her final exit, three years really isn't a vote of confidence it's more a transition. To give Disney time to find the replacement and to have Kathy exit, probably in less than the three years she has.

I was done with SW when they started calling fans racist, sexists etc etc for not liking the movie - that and what they did to Lukes character and not allowing us one shot of Luke, Leia and Han together. I still have the originals and thats all anyone really needs.

I'd start worrying about the performance of Episode 9 if i were Disney.

The Vader mask in TFA makes no sense whatsoever !

Not be seeing 9.

Kathleen Kennedy has become Frank Drebin, standing in front of the fireworks factory. "Nothing to see here. Please disperse! Nothing to see here."

Iger says 1 a year might have been too much. I'd have gone to see 4 or 5 a year IF they were worth seeing. As a SW fan, saying nonsense like 'burned out' and 'over saturated' is just wrong. A good movie is a good movie. 'Last Jedi' wasn't a good movie. So I'm done with SW.

The reason Solo flopped is because every damn element of the story (Han's Blaster, the dice, his name) is either dumb or stuff we knew already. There's no real tension because we know from episode 3 that he survived the Kessel run with the Falcon intact. It's a dumb idea and the only reason people went to see it is to get their Star Wars fix. It's like buying a pie from a gas station when you're hungry - it tastes bad but it fills the hole. There's nothing more to say what hasn't been said a thousand times in videos like this (but I'm watching it anyway).

It wasn't overexposure. TLJ just did so badly that many people, myself included, put off watching Solo for several months. That said, many of the negative reviews I've seen were because of exactly how bad TLJ was.

This is the best explanation and analysis of this that I’ve seen. Awesome job man.

I honestly can't wait till Episode 9 bombs. It will be so entertaining!

STAR WARS 1977-2012 (2014) !

Star Wars to me is episode 1-6. I liked Rogue One and Solo tho. All I'm thankful for with the new star wars movies are that people are starting to appreciate the prequels more lol.

The Fox Disney deal is the reason why Solo was realeased so soon after TLJ. Bob Iger say's so in his comment that you quote in this video. The merger is the reason why Disneys release schedule was so front loaded in 2018. Everything to pump up the stock price, before the first offer to Fox shareholders. In my opinnion you are totally right why they haven't fired Kathleen Kennedy. Fireing her would signal to everybody that Star Wars is in deep trouble. Same reason for the silence on the Rian Johnson trilogy, canceling it would mean TLJ was a failure for Disney and that is a message they don't want to go out. Disney is hoping that time and cool trailers for episode 9 will bring fans back, we will see. My anticipation for episode 9 is zero! But my morbid curiosity how they stich together their mess is a ten.

we need boycot star wars IX

TLJ is the one and only reason for SOLO tanking so hard. Blaming Star Wars fatigue or release dates is a smokescreen. Solo was actually not that bad. Nor is Alden Erhenreich as an actor. Woody Harrelson on the other hand tend to appear in mediocre films, by most peoples standards. All in all SOLO beats TLJ by a longshot. But in all honesty that's not a hard thing to do.

to quote Kevin Smith " In Hollywood, you fail upwards"

JarJarKennedy... what a waste. Like Cam Mitchel said, "Gee, politics sucks no matter what planet you're on"... to which Teal'C naturally replied, "Indeed".

Oh man, that 23:45 image reminded how much they shafted poor Mark Hamill. For 99% of the video I was fine mostly, now I feel depressed again.

Logically sound, mature, and respectfully done. Great work!

Andre What I think is that you made a very well researched and impartial video. These are things I have come to expect from Midnights edge.

I hope Episode 9 bombs. I don't care about these characters or anything having to do with this trilogy

I saw Solo free when a friend brought a downloaded copy over(long after it'd already left theaters). Alden wasn't bad, the movie was actually good by all standards I have for a movie. TLJ absolutely is the reason it bombed financially. It is THE reason I won't pay to see another SW movie or buy a single pice of SW merchandise for myself or my children for as long as I live. Solo being enjoyable didn't shake that decision at all and nothing shy of completely refilming an entirely new episode 8(which I know will never happen) will change my mind. Not only did they thoroughly destroy THE greatest fictional hero in my life(Luke Skywalker) but they made Star Wars into a vehicle of full leftist authoritarian propaganda so blatant that a purple haired feminazi, who existed solely to undermine and emasculate the lone competent male lead, kamikaze'd the right wing off of "The Supremacy." You really don't get any more on the nose than that.

Disney you’ve destroyed my beloved Star Wars!😞

Good God, man. You should change the name of your channel from Midnight's Edge to The Oracle of Delphi.

So Disney thinks that keeping someone who fans openly hate is better then hiring a new executive? Ok. I don;t mind TLJ, honestly. Bad movies happen. Shitting on me by directors and and executive is unforgivable though. So no money from me.

I think Solo would have done better if KK and RJ didn't write off the criticisms of the film and attack the fans. I just watched Solo for the first time a couple weeks ago (so I guess a year after TLJ?), I didn't think it was so bad. I felt the main character did a fine job. Some things like the giant monsters were cringy, but overall I was satisfied. As far as KK's 3 year extension, I would bet money it has to do with stuff already in development she has her fingerprints on. I.e. get episode IX out, the mandalorians, and anything else she has had input on. Start nothing new with her. That way Disney can wrap up all lose ends of KK and anyone new coming in has a basically clean slate to work with and not have to worry about the KK era.

Last Jedi went to shit, as soon as Leia Poppins flew through space. Ryan Johnson and whoever signed off on this thing, are to blame. The ending battle scene was to short, and a joke. Empire was better.

Andre's videos remain the best coverage on just any given subject he touches upon. Always informative, clear, fair. Can't wait for next video!

Pretty spot on analysis. I would also add that Iger is taking into account the culture war. Firing her now would only lead to mass cries of misogynistic motivations. He is betting on Episode 9 flopping and giving him cover. No one will be able to argue against firing her after back to back flops on top of TLJ backlash.

You have earned a subscriber! Great work my man!

Like the schizophrenic treatment that Star Trek has suffered (with its rights divided like a carcass by Paramount and CBS, with no one in charge who actually knows how to tell a good story, the Disney movies since the sale by Lucas have been horribly bad. The stories do not pay attention to what went on before. The stories are not written as SF, but have veered off into Science fantasy. The characters act out of character. And no hate toward the young actress, but the Mary Sue Jedi acted like she knew best and was powerful enough to "not need" the other players at all; the others were casualties, not supporting cast. So, yes, this is absolutely Kennedy's fault. And the board, for putting her in charge, and letting her continue to make those mistakes. Like Zack in charge of the DCEU; he's capable of making decent films, but his overall tendency is toward pretty dark themes. Yes, he helped make Wonder Woman, but the overall guiding hand was Patty Jenkins, who respected her material enough that even with it being a reboot of the source, it was still excellent. In Batman vs Superman, the ONLY bright spot was when Gal Gadot showed up, and even Joss Whedon couldn't save the dark, pessimistic mess. So, yeah, I'm mad about a lot of franchises being mangled by suits who simply don't understand their properties enough to replicate the previous success; or even how to make good movies -- plot, characterizations true to the character's own past, and let the rest fall where it may. Without a good story, people will discover that. CGI looks great, even fantastic at times, but it never could carry an entire movie. And when you have characters act out of character, you feel compelled to take them for mental health counseling -- which only works if the person causing the problem (in this case, the studio heads) agree to participate in getting help.

KK just doesn't get it.

What I like about these videos, is how things are put into perspective, or should I say context. Now the extention of Kathleen Kennedys contract makes a bit of sense. Also happy New Year and congrats on 90.000 subskribers. Well done and well earned.

Fun fact in Indiana Jones temple of doom Kathleen is one of the dancers in anything goes.

I think Mark Hamill should be hired to run Lucasfilm.

We need someone who loves Star Wars running it, not this hate monger.

When an actor "makes a role his own" that's doublespeak for "he can't play the role as it should be played".

Disney in 20 years: "Cats everywhere love our new Star Wars blockbuster! Its the 9th in our "new format" approach to Disney classics. Even though she is incoherent and elderly, Kathleen Kennedy (our new president, owner, and creative director) thought we should completely abandon writing movies adult humans enjoyed to instead cater to the cats, who as you very well know, have been thoroughly underrepresented in lead acting roles. The response has been mixed, but we are confident in our new direction. And the American Cat Liberties Union has really seen previously impossible inroads in cat inclusion in all levels of the workforce and politics. It might not look like what movies used to look like, but we feel we are doing something higher than simply making good movies."

I really like how you do your videos. I very much like that you can just listen to them while doing creative work for example. That relaxing pad underneath sets a great tone to the quite serious way of narration. It's calm and your pace is well chosen. The quality of your content is also super informative and shows how much work goes into it. Great stuff Midnight's Edge.

Let episode 9 burn, burn it to the box office ground. We have the power.

"Misogynistic racist" for not accepting The Last Jedi (or any of the new "canon's" content at all, for that matter)? That is a cop out of the highest order. The Expanded Universe, for all it's flaws, has tonnes of diversity and strong female characters. The Social Justice Warriors would have gotten their way even if episodes 7-9 were EU book adaptations. Radical feminists would have had their heroines in the likes of Jaina Solo, Mara Jade, and Tenel Ka Djo. There were opportunities where you can make diversity, too. Hell, no one really ever said a sequel trilogy or any other sort of post-Return of the Jedi follow up material would necessarily have to be a verbatim book adaptation anyway, but could be heavily informed and inspired by the EU's plethora of viable material to continue the mythos the way the Millennial fans actually expect. I never want to hear that someone who doesn't agree with the results of Kennedy's power trip called racist and/or misogynistic. That's a knee-jerk cop out with no basis for concern. Its not the female lead character or the presence of prominent African American actors that bothers us. If Star Wars (especially EU Star Wars) tries to teach us anything in terms of a positive, ideal society, it's tolerance, acceptance, and equality for everyone and that race, ultimately, only matters in terms of species as opposed to mere skin colour... and even then, you still treat aliens with the same dignity you treat other Humans. There's no place for accusations of "racism" except against Human-supremacist Imperial types.... which, of course, should and does help paint the Empire as the evil tyrannical organization it is supposed to be in the mythos and thus makes you cheer on the Rebellion/New Republic even more (since they live by principals of egalitarianism). Ugh! Some people are too sensitive and take sociopolitical issues a bit too seriously.

As usual, your vid is superbly done and very informative! I live for your vid commentaries!

Completely get the Clouseau analogy, Great!!

It maybe would have done better but I doubt it, we would have had the backlash regardless after The Last Jedi. Their response towards the fans is so out of touch. I hear Solo is actually decent but I have no interest in it or anything else these people poop out.

Some extremely intriguing Hollywood Politics.

KK makes great SW actor, her face has that Sith vibe.

Kasdan's proper question should be: "What if Solo had been released before 'The Last Jedi'?"

Kathleen's three years: 2019: Episode IX 2020: Hiatus 2021: Side Movie 2022: Hiatus (Kathleen's contract ends) Yeah, she's likely going to be replaced in 2022. See you then, everyone!

Brilliant analysis, and the one that makes the most sense. No hate or histrionics, just a cool, cold breakdown. A voice of sanity in Star Warsland!? Shit it really is 2019. Happy new year Sir.

Solo was twice the movie of TFA & TLJ. People didn't go as the press poo=pooed Solo as an inferior movie with new actors, but in reality, it had more action and suspense than 7 or 8. Solo was a much more enjoyable movie!

Dave Filoni would be do a way better job as Star Wars director. He really cares about the series and listened to George Lucas when making the clone wars

I’ll watch episode 9 but I will NOT spend one cent of my money doing so. Just like many people who are old enough to have seen episode 4 in the theater in the 70’s, I’ve spent hundreds of dollars over the years on SW movie tickets, VHS/DVD collections, digital copies, etc. All of that is over. I predict that ep 9 will set a record for the most widely pirated film of all time. Meaning the most views with the least amount of actual sales.

I wonder if George Lucas watches these kinds of videos

Over three years later...we're still waiting for her to either move on or get moved. 🤦

I'm still seeing starwars stuff in clearance bins everywhere...

Keep up the boycott true Fans! Boycott until Disney makes a good product for us

Everything you've said in this video makes perfect sense, as usual. Great stuff.

You sir have got talent i dont usually sub unless its something i find interesting or for my kids but this is great content.

So all those fans who warned us that this would happen when Kennedy took over were absolutely right. I think you could have Dave Filoni as the one running the content with a CEO savy executive handling the business.

Everything about this 'culture war' stinks of political theatre. Disney wouldn't pay $4billion without keeping an eye on the writer's room (unless of course they have no idea what they're doing). The same thing happened to all media - news & criticism is now so embedded with the corporate product, it's as if every media owner has their own Extended Universe. People used to make a movie for it's own sake.

Best way to start the New Year is to hear Andre's voiceover on a brand new Midnight's Edge video topic of more recent news and speculation article on a Star Wars issue! Happy New Year folks!

We have bad movie fatigue not franchise fatigue. Make good films not bad films! 😁😁

Also, The Force Awakens is being reevaluated by many people who liked it at the time of its release.

This is such a clear and concise analysis of the Lucasfilm situation. Thank you.

She's being kept on as a potential scapegoat to blame in case projects like Episode 9 and beyond fail. That's her main role now.

The statement at 13:34 is also very interesting because it doesn't mention Rian Johnson's upcoming trilogy at all. He has hopefully realized by now the amount of damage Rian has done to Star Wars with one movie alone.

@ 1:32 - Yoda be lookin like Don Cheadle,"Don't touch me."😂😂😂

That’s a good point. No one wants to be promoted to captain of a sinking ship.

if in doubt bring the Russian Troll Bots out, it is way easier than admitting people dislike your movies.

The reason I didn't see Solo was because I didn't feel compelled to go. I am very excited to see Marvell movies, and I was very excited to see the Lord of the Rings/Hobbit movies. But Star Wars has lost it for me. Episode VII was dumb, Rouge One was good, but Episode 8 was really bad. The stink was probably still in my nose when Solo came out and it wasn't around long enough. Meanwhile I was watching Dunkirk and the silly Churchill move. I really wanted to see those, Solo didn't get me excited enough. At least not after E8.

This video has been like a medicinal balm, softly soothing my fandom wounds.

The "Movie Fatigue" excuse is rather pathetic especially coming from a company that owns Marvel Studios.

I was hesitant about this video but it is well thought out.

THIS! my friend is a spot on observation and conclusion.

yo great video. whats the music you use in your intro? its insane

What if it had been released around the holidays? They would blame the movie's performance on Mary Poppins, Aquaman, Bumblebee and Spidermen: Spider-Verse, instead of the mythical *Star Wars Fatigue and Deadpool 2.*

_Phenomenal Analysis as always Andre._

Good vid! You said some things the ‘toxic fandom’ had been saying but were ignored for some time now (namely why Solo failed and the hidden messages of Iger’s press release) and gave some great perspective on KKs extension/future. The one piece I wish you had covered was the consolation career achievement award she was given leading up to the extension. That would be a popular KK supporter counterpoint to claims of Disney distancing itself from KK. I still think you are spot on though, just wish that had been addressed.

Your analysis is spot on in my opinion. Subscribed.

Your sound reasoning and rational argument makes perfect sense. Never thought about it this way. Happy New Year! 😁

Any Star Wars film following The Last Jedi was doomed to fail simply because it was next in line. My problems with Disney Star Wars all due to lack of Story, something that Star Wars should NEVER, EVER have problems with! Star Wars is entirely STORY driven, it simply can't work without a decent story to weave a film around. The Force Awakens was basically a rerun of A New Hope (the first Star Wars film). Unfortunately it suffered from lazy, uninspired writing, the original film gave us a reason to fear the Empire immediately, TFA failed to do that. The First Order simply wasn't set up to look like a credible threat to anyone at the start of the film, and at that same point the Resistance served no purpose, just what were they resisting? Nothing that anyone I know could see at the start of TFA, the Resistance simply was not needed, until the new version of the failed Death Star destroyed the New Republic in a single shot (again, lazy storytelling). The only saving grace that TFA had was the new cast of characters, all of them had great potential, but all of them suffered at the hands of Lazy Storytellers who chose not to bother with explaining why their characters did anything, like Rey (who is not really a Mary Sue. A Mary Sue is the writer creating thenselves as a character so perfect that the character can't fail at anything, Rey just isn't that character, NO writer would create a Mary Sue and write it this badly!) learning to use the force so quickly without training. Or Hux, who comes off as a boarderline idiot who never would have made General due to friendly fire in the field long before he could be promoted that far. Those are just the two best examples of Lazy Character Writing that made the top of my list, the third being Kylo Ren removing his helmet (lost all the mystery and potential fear factor doing that) and his temper tantrums that made him look like a weak rehash of Anakin Skywalker. Almost all of my issues with TFA were forgivable considering it was the first installment of a trilogy, it may have been a rerun, but, it had a story. The story was watered down Star Wars that really didn't feel like it tied in with the first two trilogies, but it still felt like Star Wars. Rogue One was the closest anyone could get to the feel of the original trilogy, it wasn't a rerun, it was a bridge, it had a good storyline that, while a bit dry, didn't suffer from Lazy Writing and actually managed to tie the Prequel Trilogy to the Original in a way that honored both. The Last Jedi, supposedly the sequal to TFA, almost completely failed to feel like a Star Wars Film. It had some really good scenes that BELONG in a Star Wars film, but, it had no real story, very little continuity with the seven films that came before it and did everything it could to shit on everything that came before it and all the fans who supported the franchise for decades. Rian Johnson said he wanted to subvert our expectations with TLJ, he succeeded completely. I expected to get a good movie out of him, I expected it to feel like Star Wars, I expected to enjoy it and I expected it to make sense and tie into the movie it was supposed to be the sequel to... Expectations successfully subverted, congrats Rian, you are now on the auto boycot lists of millions of your former fans, great work! Basically The Last Jedi is what you get when the director throws a temper tantrum when told he had to make a sequel before he can film his own Star Wars Trilogy, extremely lazy writing and directing of a really bad fanfic film. Numbered Star Wars films should never be worse than stand alone films. I hope they never waste any more money on Rian. Solo: A Star Wars Story. This was actually a fun film, unfortunately it had the misfortune of being next in line after TLJ. It also wasn't helped by having the original director fired and replaced by Ron Howard, sorry Ron, you were the victim of TLJ backlash, I hope you can do your own Star Wars story in the future. This film had a decent story, felt like Star Wars, but, it should have had a much darker tone to it since it was about smugglers and criminals. Solo still felt like Star Wars. Unless Episode IX is split into three acts I really can't see how the Trilogy can be saved from the debacle that was The Last Jedi. May Rian Johnson never work in the Star Wars Universe again!

Excellent and enlightening analysis! Thank you for sharing!

Dude just refound your channel and I just so admire your research and care put into this. Nice to see a RU-vidr who banks on smarts, presentation and content over drama and clickbait. Got yourself a sub :) you inspire this fellow RU-vidr.