I can’t believe Lucasfilm reportedly has 60 scripts for aStar Warstelevision show that have largely gone unused. Although it’s been a matter of record for several years, new details about George Lucas’Star Wars: Underworldhave recently been revealed. To that end, many have been wondering if the fascinating series will ever become a reality.
One of the last projects George Lucas worked on before selling Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012,Star Wars: Underworldwas intended to be a major multi-season show the likes of which had never been seen before on network television. However, there are some key reasons why the show never got made.However, I firmly believe that the time has come for Lucasfilm to finally makeStar Wars: Underworlda reality, especially seeing how 60 out of a hundred intended scripts were apparently written for the series before its cancellation.
Star Wars: Underworld Was George Lucas' Hope For The Future
A Prestige Live-Action Star Wars Show Geared Towards Adults
According to reports,Star Wars: Underworldwas George Lucas’s big idea and mission in the late 2000s, shortly after getting the animatedClone Warsseries off the ground in 2008. Gathering several accomplished television writers to Skywalker Ranch, around 60 third-draft scripts were written for this intended series set during theDark Times of the Empire’s rule, betweenRevenge of the SithandA New Hope. Story arcs would have focused on Palpatine, Darth Vader, Boba Fett, Han Solo, and Lando Calrissian, with many actors like Ian McDiarmid and Jeremy Bulloch intending to return for the show.
Underworldwould have been predominantly set in the lower levels of Coruscant, while alsotying into the intended video game1313from LucasArtsthat was also cancelled shortly after the series.Confirmed to be darker and more geared toward adult audiences, it seems Lucas intended for a big chunk of theStar Warsfranchise to start growing up with its audience. However, it ultimately wasn’t meant to be.
There’s A Simple Reason Star Wars: Underworld Didn’t Get Made
Insanely Expensive and Unfortunate Timing
By all accounts,Star Wars: Underworldsounds like it would have absolutely changed the game for the franchise and its fandom. Some elements ofUnderworldand1313made their way into the canon through arcs ofTheClone Warsand more of the futureStar Warslive-action shows on Disney+. However, the bulk ofUnderworldhas since gone unused and underutilized.
Unfortunately, the biggest challenge that got in the way ofUnderworldmade was the insane cost. Case in point,each episode ofStar Wars: Underworldallegedly had a projected budget of $40 million. For reference, the average episode ofThe Mandaloriancosts around $15 million thanks to advancements in ILM’s visual effects technology Lucasfilm just didn’t have at the time, most notably “The Volume”.
Likewise, unfortunate timing proved to be a key obstacle as well. While Lucas did have a meeting set with HBO (the only studio with the financial capability to makeUnderworldhappen), the CEO got caught in a scandal the day before and was subsequently let go.To that end, I do think the time is much better now for Disney and Lucasfilm to finally make a version ofStar Wars: Underworlda reality.
Star Wars: Underworld’s Scripts Would’ve Been Perfect For The Disney+ Era
Andor More Than Proves Underworld’s Potential
When looking at the current state of theStar Warsfranchise,it’s easy to look atAndoras a sign pointing to the great potentialStar Wars Underworldcould have if it were to be made today.Andoris certainly one of Lucasfilm’s darkest and most serious projects geared towards an adult audience, which is similarly set during the Dark Times. However, despite being immensely popular,Andor’supcoming second season is also its last as it will also lead right up to the events of 2016’sRogue One.
Andor Season 2: Trailer, Story, Updates, & Everything We Know
Andor season 1 ended with an explosive finale, leading many to wonder what season 2 has in store for the characters of Star Wars’ most exciting show.
Keeping that in mind, perhapsUnderworldcould become a reality onceAndorconcludes, exploring the early days of the Empire coming to power and the lower levels of Coruscant. It would certainly be much easier to produce today compared to the late 2000s. Ultimately, it just seems like a no-brainer for Lucasfilm to finally make use of the 60 scripts from the final years of George Lucas' time running the company.
