Netflix Signs George Lucas To $8 Billion Deal
Begun, the streaming wars have. In yet another aggressive move to spoil Disney’s upcoming streaming service, Netflix has reached a record-breaking deal with the legendary creator of Star Wars and Indiana Jones, George Lucas. The exclusive agreement, said to be worth a whopping $8 billion, is the latest coup for Netflix who has been on a shopping spree, hiring several marquee writers and producers over the last 7 months.
First came a $100 million deal with long-time ABC superstar Shonda Rhimes, creator of Grey’s Anatomy. Then came the $300 million poaching of Ryan Murphy of Glee and American Horror Story fame from his 20th Century Fox agreement.
Part of Lucas’ deal with Netflix includes the exclusive streaming rights to nearly a dozen experimental films the visionary filmmaker has been working on during his retirement. One of the films is already being dubbed a “Star Wars Killer,” because of its epic scope and space fantasy themes. Rumor has it Harrison Ford, Johnny Depp and Tessa Thompson have already signed on.
The acquisition of “The Maker” as Lucas is known among Star Wars circles, comes at the worst possible time for Disney. Its last entry in the saga films underperformed, while its upcoming young Han Solo spinoff has been plagued by production challenges, with many fans still be sour on the entire idea. As a result, the entertainment juggernaut recently reversed its position of distancing itself from Lucas and his ideas.
For several months now, the House of Mouse has been actively courting Lucas to take on a greater advisory role for its new films ever since The Last Jedi sparked a tumultuous backlash that resulted in Disney downgrading its initial projections for the film by $700 million.
While Lucas was amicable towards Disney’s new attitude, even visiting the set of Solo: A Star Wars Story to help out on a scene, it seems the star ship had already sailed. Perhaps the father of Star Wars was still sore over his sequel trilogy notes being mostly discarded in place of J.J. Abrams, Lawrence Kasdan and Rian Johnson’s own ideas. Whatever the case may be, Lucas will be working exclusively with Netflix for the remainder of his storied career. Ironically, he remains one of Disney’s biggest shareholders with a $4 billion stake in the company.
In addition to his experimental films, Lucas is also developing a high-end sci-fi anthology series for Netflix along with one or two original superhero properties. The man who redefined the notion of what sequels and trilogies could be will also be revisiting some of his own classic properties as well. We’re told Lucas is calling in favors and negotiating to gain the rights to write and produce sequels to American Graffiti as well as Willow, the latter of which he’s already discussed with director Ron Howard, on the set of Solo no less.
“I can’t wait to give my fans all-new heroes and create modern-day fairy tales they can believe in. I’m over the moon at being back in the saddle again. Who says you can’t revolutionize Hollywood twice in one lifetime?! Just watch me. Netflix is the future. And I’m proud to be their $8 billion dollar man,” said Lucas in a statement released earlier today.
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings believes Lucas is still the ultimate content creator, who can help the company not only win the steaming wars but eventually become top dog in Hollywood and China. “George Lucas has influenced entertainment like few people before or since. He is a storytelling force that knows how to create powerful tales with heart and imagination that stand the test of time. We’re honored to have this genuine visionary join the Netflix family and lead the charge into an exciting new realm of entertainment.”
No word on exactly when Lucas’ first projects will appear on Netflix. However, the streamer’s stock jumped an astounding 80,000% upon news of the announcement. We reached out to Disney and Lucasfilm for their reaction to the news, but did not hear back in time.
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