Lucas: I sold company to give Star Wars a longer life

George Lucas
Will stay on as 'Yoda'

As Star Wars characters prepare to live on in the massive universe run by their new guardians, the Walt Disney Company, George Lucas sat down to discuss what the future holds for the franchise that has captured the imagination of millions for decades.

In a video posted on YouTube, Lucas, along with Kathleen Kennedy, Lucasfilm's new president, said the deal was done to protect Star Wars and move it into the future.

"I felt that I really wanted to put the company somewhere in a larger entity which would protect," Lucas said as to why selling Lucasfilm to Disney was the right decision.

"When I first made Star Wars, everyone in Hollywood said, 'Well this is a movie that Disney should have made,'" he later added.

The force lives on

Not only does Lucas have faith Disney will protect his story, the company plans to expand upon it, with Lucas' blessing.

"I have story treatments of [Episodes] VII, VIII and IX," Lucas said. Those treatments are now in Kennedy's (and by extension, Disney's) hands.

"We are absolutely going to make Star War movies," she said.

With or without Lucas, who swore after Episode III he wouldn't make another film, Star Wars fans can sleep soundly (or not) knowing the franchise will continue on.

"I'm doing this so that the films will have a longer life," Lucas said. "So that more fans and people can enjoy them in the future. It's a very big universe that I've created and there are a lot of stories in there."

Check out the video below:

Michelle Fitzsimmons

Michelle was previously a news editor at TechRadar, leading consumer tech news and reviews. Michelle is now a Content Strategist at Facebook.  A versatile, highly effective content writer and skilled editor with a keen eye for detail, Michelle is a collaborative problem solver and covered everything from smartwatches and microprocessors to VR and self-driving cars.