Rian Johnson Refutes Rumors That He Is Leaving The 'Star Wars' Universe

Nothing burger turned down flat? Tonight, rumors swirled that Rian Johnson was departing from his post at Lucasfilm, the confirmation bias presumption being toxic fandom had chased him away from “Star Wars.” Following the success of Johnson’s “Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” the filmmaker was hired to direct, or at least conceive of a new “Star Wars” trilogy. Unsubstantiated rumors spread like wildfire tonight, but Johnson has snuffed them out quickly on Twitter.

READ MORE: ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi:’ Rian Johnson Manages Luke Skywalker’s Expectations, The Surprises, New Trilogy & More [Full Interview]

“No it isn’t true, I’m still working on the trilogy,” Johnson wrote on Twitter. “With all due respect to the [the site who broke the fake news], who I’m sure are lovely kind bros with good fraternal intentions.”

Johnson has downplayed the loud voice outrage of toxic fandom for some time, suggesting it receives a lot of press and coverage, but isn’t actually that many people. Last year, he insisted that the “loud response” to “Star Wars” had not affected his trilogy.

“I feel like every ‘Star Wars’ thing that ever gets made has a big, loud response, because ‘Star Wars’ fans are passionate, and that’s what makes them awesome,” he said at SXSW last year. “I don’t think it’s possible when you’re really telling a story you care about, and having it come from your heart — it’s just not possible to be intellectually processing, like, what everyone else wants, nor would it be a good thing, a healthy thing. I don’t think that’s a good way to tell a story.”

I asked Johnson during ‘The Last Jedi’ press if creating a new “Star Wars” series from scratch was daunting, but he seemed more excited by the possibilities rather than feeling the weight of the franchise’s legacy. “Yeah, but it’s exciting,” he said. “I don’t know if I feel it like a weight. It’s boundlessly exciting, the possibilities of that. I can’t wait to jump into it.”

“We had the time of our lives collaborating with Lucasfilm and Disney on ‘The Last Jedi,’ ” Johnson and producing partner Ram Bergman said in a joint statement when the new trilogy was first announced. “‘Star Wars’ is the greatest modern mythology and we feel very lucky to have contributed to it. We can’t wait to continue with this new series of films.”

Jason Ward at MakingStarWars has reported that “Game Of Thrones” creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss’ “Star Wars” series will likely come before Johnson’s which makes sense because he’s currently preoccupied.

Johnson is finishing up his next picture “Knives Out,” a mystery crime he wrote which stars Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Lakeith Stanfield, Michael Shannon, Ana de Armas, and many more. Lionsgate will release the picture on November 27. It’s at the top of our list of the 100 Most Anticipated Films of 2019.