LOS ANGELES, Dec. 10 (UPI) — George Lucas may have lost his way as an exploratory director because of his “Star Wars” sequels, says director Francis Ford Coppola.
Talking to the press at the Marrakech International Film Festival this week, the “Godfather” director discussed the future of cinema, predicting “daring” experimentation in film production. The topic led him to mention his friend Lucas, saying the “big films” were unfortunate for the filmmaker’s career.
“I think ‘Star Wars,’ it’s a pity, because George Lucas was a very experimental crazy guy and he got lost in this big production and never got out of it,” he said. “I still hope that he made so much money out of it that he will just make some little movies. He promises me that he will.”
Regarding his own work, Coppola says he may have just a single additional film in the works before retirement.
“It may be very long, and it may go in different places,” he says of the production, an Italian-American family saga titled Distant Vision.
Last Sunday, Lucas reflected on “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” the latest installment directed by J.J. Abrams. “I think the fans are going to love it,” he said on the red carpet at the Kennedy Center Honors ceremony in Washington, D.C.
