That George Lucas Returning To Star Wars Rumor, Explained

In 2012, George Lucas elected to do the unthinkable. In a massive $4 billion deal, he sold Lucasfilm and the "Star Wars" franchise to the Walt Disney Company, officially handing off his brainchild to a new set of creatives. In the years since, fans of the galaxy far, far away have seen plenty of new shows, video games, and movies come to fruition, with the likes of Jon Favreau, Deborah Chow, and Lucas' protege, the recently promoted Dave Filoni, in charge. Rumor has it, however, that Lucas — Forbes' richest celebrity of 2024 — is set to return to "Star Wars," but is this really the case?

Word of Lucas' supposed return stems from an interview conducted by Star Wars Theory on YouTube with the set decorator of 1977's "Star Wars," Roger Christian. "I think he's coming back, you know, I'm pretty sure now that he's doing a series. I think that they're bringing him into the fold," Christian claimed. He explained that this was just a suspicion on his end and that he could be prophesying. So, with Christian's clarification in mind, if you're hoping to see Lucas return to "Star Wars" and tell new stories, it's for the best that you keep your expectations in check.

While it's not impossible that Christian's theory comes to pass, it doesn't seem likely that Lucas will add to the "Star Wars" narrative ever again for multiple reasons.

There are a couple of major signs that George Lucas won't return to the "Star Wars" franchise in the future. First and foremost is the fact that the last time he brought "Star Wars" movies to theaters, fan and critic reception was absolutely atrocious. The prequel trilogy was torn apart from all directions, with Lucas and his crew of actors being bombarded by vitriol from even the biggest "Star Wars" fans. Why would anyone, much less someone who had established themselves in pop culture and made plenty of money to live comfortably, want to go back to that?

Additionally, Lucas had his personal life in mind when he chose to let "Star Wars" go. "In 2012 I was 69... So the question was am I going to keep doing this the rest of my life? Do I want to go through this again? Finally, I decided I'd rather raise my daughter and enjoy life for a while," he said in the book "The Star Wars Archives 1999-2005." In 2012 and beyond, Lucas has only served as an executive producer on such film projects as "Red Tails," "Strange Magic," and "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny." He has done the same for television efforts "Double Victory: The Tuskegee Airmen at War" and "Manifest Destiny."

With all of this, and the fact he hasn't directed anything since 2005 – the best of the prequel trilogy, "Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith" – in mind, odds are George Lucas isn't going to suddenly come out of retirement to lead an upcoming "Star Wars" production. As great as it would be for him to return, all signs point to his time with the franchise being over.