Hollywood Moguls Are the New Auteurs
The <em>Star Wars: Episode IX </em>director Colin Trevorrow lost his job after clashing with the real power behind the franchise: the producer Kathleen Kennedy.
Updated on September 12 at 11:24 a.m. ET
Since the “relaunch” of the Star Wars franchise—a yearly onslaught of sequels and spinoffs under the umbrella of Disney and the mega-producer Kathleen Kennedy—the hefty price paid to George Lucas for the films has looked eminently worthwhile. Star Wars: The Force made $2 billion worldwide in 2015. took another $1 billion in 2016. , , should earn somewhere between those two totals this year, and there are many more projects along the way guaranteed to print money. remains the strongest brand in Hollywood. The only victims of its sale to Disney, thus far, have been young, up-and-coming directors.
