At Disney’s 2020 Investor Day, Lucasfilm announced a ton of new Star Wars content, including streaming series that will join The Mandalorian on Disney+, like Ahsoka and Rangers of the New Republic, and movies that will (virus permitting) play on the big screen, like Patty Jenkins’ Rogue Squadron. Lucasfilm also has a new video game developing branch and it continues to publish Star Wars novels and comic books, so the company clearly isn’t putting all its eggs in one media basket.
But after the immense success of The Mandalorian — and the divided reception to the sequel trilogy — there’s an argument to be made that Star Wars works better on the small screen. That doesn’t mean the franchise’s big-screen output can’t still be great, of course.
Works Better In TV: It Was Originally Inspired By Serials
When George Lucas initially conceived Star Wars, he was inspired by the space serials he grew up watching, like Flash Gordon. These were multi-part stories that audiences consumed a chapter at a time, which is why Lucas fleshed out six parts of his saga from the offset.
The adventure-of-the-week storytelling of The Mandalorian has recaptured the feeling of a serial like Flash Gordon much more effectively than summer tentpole releases three years apart (or two years, if the filmmakers are dealing with Disney’s shareholders).
The Movies Can Still Be Great: Visionary Filmmakers
The upcoming movie slate for the Star Wars franchise features entries from some of the most popular and revered blockbuster directors working today. Patty Jenkins and Taika Waititi are both directing Star Wars movies, while Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige is producing one.
If Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy keeps bringing in visionary filmmakers to put their own personal authorial stamp on a galaxy far, far away, then there’s plenty of hope for Star Wars’ future on the big screen.
Works Better In TV: It’s More Conducive To The Sprawling Universe
One of the hallmarks of the Star Wars saga is its epic scale. There are countless planets in this galaxy far, far away, each filled with species who all have their own languages and cultures, and there are governing bodies presiding over different worlds — it’s a lot to cover in a two-hour movie. TV series like The Mandalorian have had the freedom to explore a lot more of this gigantic fictional universe than any of the movies have.
Sprawling worlds come with sprawling casts of characters and TV shows have the freedom to flesh out characters who would otherwise fall into the background. Padmé Amidala and Mace Windu got a ton more pathos and development in The Clone Wars than in any of the prequel movies.
The Movies Can Still Be Great: Self-Contained Adventures
Before The Mandalorian came along and blew everyone’s socks off, Rogue One was generally regarded to be the peak of the Disney era of Star Wars, with director Gareth Edwards finding the right balance between the fresh and the familiar, albeit dealing with a choppy, heavily rewritten script.
That movie introduced its entire cast and then killed them off within its runtime, proving that the so-called “Anthology” movies could succeed by telling self-contained standalone stories unconcerned with setting up sequels and spin-offs.
Works Better In TV: The Cliffhangers Are Exhilarating
One of the fun parts of Star Wars’ episodic storytelling is its ability to end on cliffhangers like Han being frozen in carbonite or Anakin and Padmé getting married in secret or Rey bringing Luke’s lightsaber to him on Ahch-To.
In a TV series like The Mandalorian, on a weekly basis, Star Wars fans can enjoy cliffhangers like Moff Gideon wielding the Darksaber or Grogu being abducted by Dark Troopers.
The Movies Can Still Be Great: The Franchise Originated As A Movie Series
Back in 1977, moviegoers lined up around the block to watch screening after screening of the original Star Wars movie. This franchise originated on the big screen and every Star Wars fan’s earliest memories of the saga came from the movies.
No matter how successful the streaming shows are, there’s no way that Star Wars movies will die out entirely, because this is a film series, first and foremost.
Works Better In TV: Smaller Characters Can Get The Spotlight
Since there’s far less risk with a streaming series than with a $200 million movie (with another $200 million of advertising costs), Lucasfilm has been able to take more creative risks in the streaming space. There’s no way Ahsoka Tano would’ve gotten her own movie, but now she’s getting her own series.
And it also applies to the supporting players of the series. There’s only room for so many characters in a movie, but shows like The Mandalorian can bring in beloved characters like Boba Fett — and lesser-known but significant ones like Cobb Vanth — as guest stars in almost every episode.
The Movies Can Still Be Great: Some Stories Work Better As Movies Than TV Series
The adventures of the Mandalorian and Grogu were best-suited to the small screen, but that doesn’t mean every story can be told as a streaming series. The Rebels’ quest to destroy the Death Star was best-suited to the big screen.
Going forward, Lucasfilm should tell each story in the best way it can be told, whether that’s as a streaming series or as a movie.
Works Better In TV: Movies Come With Higher Expectations
When a viewer is sitting in their home and sticks something on Disney+, their level of investment will be invariably lower than when they’ve gone out to a movie theater, paid for a ticket, and taken their seat alongside their friends for what promises to be a rollicking night out. Audiences go into Star Wars series with lower expectations than the movies.
The Movies Can Still Be Great: The Pure Escapism Of Star Wars Belongs On The Big Screen
There are a lot of things that make Star Wars popular, but ultimately, what brings its fans together is the sense of pure escapism they get from sitting in a movie theater and being transported to a galaxy far, far away for two hours.
Streaming is a fine way to consume entertainment, but it doesn’t compare to the sheer delight of watching lightsaber duels and space battles on the big screen.