Force Material Episode XXIV: More American Graffiti
This week, we're looking back at George Lucas' first (and least successful) sequel, More American Graffiti!
Today, the Star Wars franchise is an unstoppable juggernaut, setting new box office records and creating new fans with virtually every new entry in the series.
But times weren't always so good for Lucasfilm.
George Lucas' first attempt at a sequel, 1979's More American Graffiti, was a major disappointment — the critics savaged it, and in the words of Lucas himself, "it made 10 cents".
On this week's show, we take a look at what went wrong with More American Graffiti, and how its failure affected George Lucas' approach to the Star Wars sequels and left him fearing for the future of his company.
We also discuss how an American Graffiti sequel could have succeeded — in the hands of another young writer-director.
We'll be back next week with our Rebels recap extravaganza!
Force Material is a podcast exploring the secrets and source material of Star Wars with hosts Rohan Williams and Baz McAlister. Listen and subscribe on iTunes, Spotify, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, Stitcher, PlayerFM and Castro; stay in touch with us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram; and support the show by browsing our range of shirts, hoodies, kids apparel, mugs and more at TeePublic.
