~Hey
lockedout, it's been awhile! Okay, I'm ready to spill the tea, lol.
Apparently, the relationship between Disney and Lucas was a troubled one. Lucas was extremely guarded and protective of his precious Star Wars IP much like JK Rowling, severely limiting Disney in how they could utilize the IP in the parks and to their benefit and otherwise.
~Lucas founded Pixar and while he was impressed with how Disney handled that acquisition from Jobs. Lucas did not want Disney to mess up his vision of Star Wars. Iger kept on asking and Lucas told Iger during a private breakfast at Hollywood Brown Derby that he will let him know if and when he's ready.
~Anyway, it is no secret that James Cameron wanted Avatar to be the next Star Wars! While, Avatar may not be Star Wars -- it holds the box office record for highest grossing film. James Cameron is still committed to Avatar with the upcoming Avatar sequels.
~When Disney announced the deal with Cameron for Avatarland, it immediatedly caught Lucas's attention. He must have been concerned about Avatar upstaging Star Wars presence at Disney. And that his IP could fall between the cracks, meaning that Disney would no longer be interested in hosting Star Wars.
~Iger knew from the beginning that Avatar would not be the answer for Harry Potter, but Star Wars could. George Lucas wanted his IP to continue to thrive and he definitely did not want Star Wars to be lost in Avatar's shadow.
~For decades Lucas had no incentive to sell, but now with Avatar as an option, Iger was in a much better position to negotiate and leverage Lucas into an acceptable price.
~With all of the news surrounding Avatarland, Iger finally got a phone call from Lucas. Lucas was not comfortable about this deal but the James Cameron and Avatar relationship with Disney made him nervous.
~While Lucas has given up all control to Disney, he still has tremendous influence over his IP. He just doesn't trust Disney entirely, so Lucas made Kathleen Kennedy president of Lucasfilm which must remain intact and the next Star Wars film will be released under her authority -- so technically he's still calling the shots with the films.
~I'm not 40 yet either, but I might be by the time Disney finishes Star Wars land, if they ever start.
It's so funny, I hope we're not to old to see a Star Wars ever.
~Now, that Disney has made the deal of a lifetime, I'm still not convinced that they are eager to build a Star Wars land. Disney just did not want Universal or anyone else to get their hands on it. If Harry Potter 2 is not a huge success than Disney won't do anything else in the parks, we'll see.