Feb 5, 2023
RANDOM QUESTION SUNDAY 010
“How do you feel about Kathleen Kennedy? Do you support her?”
Hello there! The Corellian Korean here with the tenth RANDOM QUESTION SUNDAY! And the question is:
How do you feel about Kathleen Kennedy? Do you support her?
This question was posed to me by my loving wife who does not follow Star Wars related current events but has a bit of curiosity in the franchise because of #37 and yours truly.
Sometimes Mrs. CK will get bits and pieces of news about Star Wars by overhearing the Youtube content I have turned on through my bluetooth speakers. Or she'll read the posts that appear on Star Wars News Korea. Mrs. CK will drum up questions for conversation sake like "what is SKELETON CREW"? And "who is Kathleen Kennedy?".
Kathleen Kennedy is not on her radar. My wife has no idea who Kennedy is or what she has done. It's a blanks slate. So I tried to stick to the facts and explained that Kennedy is the current president of Lucasfilms. She lead the creation of the divisive Sequel Trilogy which was VERY controversial. Many of the Star Wars fandom did not like what was made under Kennedy's leadership. However there were many who supported her work. Kennedy will be stepping down as president in June of 2023. Her exit was probably set in motion by important people at Lucasfilm that felt that Kennedy did more harm than good for the franchise. There are many fans who are pleased with Kennedy's planned departure and there are probably some who are not pleased. Right now fans favor Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni over Kathleen Kennedy.
No, Kennedy is not getting the Gina Carano treatment. That's what my wife thought. Kennedy will probably get a fat severance check and a pleasant farewell ceremony. She will not be embarrassed on social media like Gina Carano. Btw, Mrs. CK thought it was wrong how Carano was publicly humiliated and fired on Twitter for having an opinion. She thought that Carano deserved professional courtesy and respect. If they were gonna fire her, they should have used the proper channels. So yeah, Kennedy will probably be treated better because Lucasfilms has a reputation to uphold. They want to avoid controversy and send her off quietly to be forgotten. Mrs. CK agreed with this approach over the public humiliation.
Then she asked which camp I sat with in the fandom schism.
Do you support Kathleen Kennedy?
I was blunt and said I disliked what Kathleen Kennedy did to Star Wars. I hated THE LAST JEDI and THE RISE OF SKYWALKER. Lucasfilms under Kennedy butchered something I cherished. How they treated Luke Skywalker and how the story was used to service identity politics over sound storytelling was unforgiveable. They stepped all over what made Star Wars great and turned on George Lucas.
The supporters of Kennedy tried to mute the fans that voiced their opinions of disdain for the Sequel Trilogy. You were labelled terrible things for having an opinion. You were not allowed to dislike those movies. Sound arguments against Rian Johnson's direction were rejected if it wasn't in support of the LAST JEDI. But still the fans resisted.
I was conflicted to see SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY. I lost all confidence in the franchise but I still loved George Lucas' creation but... Lucas was no longer the owner of Lucasfilms anymore. To my own shock, I didn't see SOLO. Under the leadership of Kennedy, I did not trust Lucasfilms to make anything for Star Wars. I stopped watching all things Star Wars until THE MANDALORIAN Season 2 came around rekindled a new hope.
I used to curse Kathleen Kennedy's name. I would post my honest thoughts about Kennedy and Johnson on social media. But one day, Luke Skywalker's actor Mark Hamill posted something on social media. He was trying to defend the new HE-MAN series on Netflix. Fans were against the new series and they took to social media show their disdain in droves. It sounded like the Sequel Trilogy all over again. I shared my sympathy for the long time fans of HE-MAN. I felt they fell prey to the wave of identity politics that has been trying to take over our beloved franchises and quality sound storytelling. But I couldn't believe Mark Hamill was trying to defend this series. Of all the people, I never thought Hamill would turn on the fans.
Then it hit me, Hamill is just doing his job. He's defending his craft... his work. He is a professional. This is his livelihood. He and others were depending on the success of this series, the Netflix's HE-MAN, for more work. They need work. They are human beings.
I resolved to let Hamill and others defend their work. Maybe these people really depended on the success of the Sequel Trilogy or HE-MAN for their livelihood. I have a children. I have mouths to feed. I would hate it if someone got in my way to feed my family. I would probably fight tooth and nail to defend my work... my livelihood. Defend my family's means of living.
So I made a vow to myself to never speak negatively against Kathleen Kennedy's work again in public. Maybe only in private trusted circles but never in public where I could harm another person's reputation and livelihood. When I started Star Wars News in Korea, I promised not to show my biased thoughts unless I have just cause to do so.
And I have kept that vow. Until now.
I also vowed to be completely to be authentic for RANDOM QUESTION SUNDAY questions. This is the only place where I would break loose and show how I really feel. My wife opened Pandora's box. And now I'm like a genie freed from his lamp. So there you have it.
Please understand. I dislike what Kathleen Kennedy did to Star Wars but I will not attack her work anymore without good reason. I will try to be objective and report the news. I wish Kathleen Kennedy and Rian Johnson the best of luck but I will not support something I disagree with. If I hate it, I will not support it. I will not touch it with a yardstick or speak negatively about it unless I have just cause to.
Some might disagree this line of thought stating that I might be doing more harm than good by not speaking the truth about what I disagree with. That companies like Lucasfilms need criticism to know what the fandom wants and thinks to move in the right direction. And I agree to some degree. I want Star Wars to succeed too. I want it bad. If I'm gonna give Lucasfilms my money, I want quality content. I'm a paying customer so why should I not say what I want. It makes sense to speak my mind as opposed to staying silent to the status quo.
After all, I did start this website to improve the quality of life in the Star Wars community, especially in Korea. Even if my efforts are ever so miniscule.
But at the same time, I don't want it bad enough to a point where someone cannot work in an industry again. I don't want to destroy their careers. If my words can destroy someone, I wish to use my words for good.
There needs to be a balance. There should be boundaries that should not crossed. We need more open dialogue without condemnation of opposing views.
Lately, I have been trying to be more transparent with my thoughts. Even my negative thoughts about recent projects. Little by little. I hope we can all be mature nurturing members of the Star Wars community similar to that old Serennian native, Romar, from BAD BATCH Season 2 Episode 2 or like Kuiil from THE MANDALORAIN Season 1.
That's it for this installment of RANDOM QUESTION SUNDAY. I hope you enjoyed number 010. If you did enjoy this post then please consider subscribing to receive notifications for future content. Also leave a like and comment. All of your support and viewership is greatly appreciated. Until next time, may the Force be with you. I have spoken.
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