It’s safe to say that Star Wars: The Force Awakens hasn’t been the most popular film title to ever be unveiled. In fact, the response to its announcement was rather tepid. While it hasn’t been roundly chastised, it hasn't exactly been celebrated either. But who came up with it? Disney CEO Bob Iger has the answer.
Bob Iger made the announcement during an interview with Bloomberg TV [via Star Wars 7 News]. The studio-head revealed that it was actually director J.J. Abrams and producer Kathleen Kennedy who came up with the title. Bob Iger was asked flat-out how the newly released title for Star Wars Episode VII was devised, and while he didn’t go in to many details surrounding its inception, he did explain that Abrams and Kennedy were the brains behind the operation. Said Iger,
"It was a decision that was made by a few people involved in the process, Kathleen Kennedy who runs Lucas Film for us, and J.J. Abrams who is directing The Force Awakens … I was gonna say Star Wars VII but now there’s a new name. We are involved in the decision. We feel great about the film. We can’t wait until it comes out."
I bet they can’t wait for it to come out. Star Wars: The Force Awakens promises to be one of the highest grossing movies of 201,5 and it will almost certainly once again line the pockets of all of the folks at Disney and Lucasfilm . I know I’m going out on a limb by saying that Star Wars: The Force Awakens might make a few bucks, but trust me - I think it might.
Meanwhile, any criticism over the name for Star Wars 7 is rather silly. In the end, a title can’t make or break a film. Yes in some instances it can help to sell an unknown release to a wider audience – I’m looking at you Snakes On A Plane and The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford - but if a film is either sensational or diabolical the blame can’t be put on its title. That’s just preposterous. As I noted in my pre-amble, though, the reaction to the unveiling of The Force Awakens was, as my good friend Bill Shakespeare used to say, much ado about nothing. Which is probably because there’s not much else you can say about it. Yes, it’s a tad hokey and on the nose in reference to the rebirth of the franchise, but it also warns us about the impending change and conflict that is expected to permeate throughout the rejuvenated saga. Other than that; it is what it is.
