In December 2012, Disney purchased Lucasfilm for $4 billion, giving the company the rights to make any future Star Wars movies and TV shows. And Disney has certainly been busy trying to get its investment back. There’s been a new trilogy, spinoff films, and multiple TV series, including the currently-running Ahsoka on Disney+. But are the good times about to end? Earlier in 2023, a rumor started stating Disney was interested in selling Star Wars, potentially back to George Lucas. So is there any validity to the rumors?
There’s Zero Evidence Disney Wants to Sell Star Wars
The rumor appears to have originated from the YouTube channel Overlord DVD. It’s mentioned how Disney has financial issues that would require the company to sell several intellectual properties, including Star Wars. As an added bonus, Disney would need to sell some of its theme parks. However, these rumors have no grounding in reality. There’s no evidence to support these accusations, so it’s safe to say Star Wars will stay at Disney for the foreseeable future.
Disney may have some financial woes, but Star Wars is clearly still a profitable venture. Four of the Disney Star Wars movies grossed over $1 billion at the box office with The Force Awakens grossing over $2 billion. Plus, Disney has added an entire Star Wars section to its theme parks. And a ton of projects are in the pipeline to keep the brand alive. In addition to the aforementioned Ahsoka, Disney has Andor Season 2, The Acolyte, and Skeleton Crew coming out in the near future. Not only that, but Disney has announced plans for some new Star Wars movies on the horizon. It remains to be seen if they’ll come to fruition, but there’s too much money to be made for Disney to sell it off at this point.
As for the other component of the rumor, there are no indications George Lucas would want to buy the rights to Star Wars back. It seems he’s content with no longer having that responsibility. But this rumor should serve as a reminder to not always believe what someone says on the internet.
