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smokeybrand · 4 years ago

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Fleabag

The casting of Phoebe Waller-Bridge in Indiana Jones 5 might be the nail in Kathleen Kennedy's casket and i have mixed feelings about it. I like Phoebe. I think she is an excellent creator proven by the brilliance of Fleabag. That show deserves all of the accolades it has received and, being a project created, written, and produced, by a women, is a shining example of what women in cinema can achieve. Fleabag is hilarious, heartfelt, challenging, and feels like a genuine passion project but a creator with a proper story to tell. It’ crazy to me that the fandom would see her addition to the five Jones installment as anything but a boon but I'm not surprised. Waller-Bridge is known to have every progressive ideals about identity in film and, apparently, that’s taboo. As some one who considers themselves part of the fandom, i disagree with all of this. Identity and politics are intrinsically part of a creator’s art simply because those ideals are intricately part of the creator, themselves. Denying this or railing against this fact is absolute folly and it makes everyone who has a state in these epic franchises, come across as petulant children.

Just because you believe in something progressive, doesn’t mean you’re a terrible person or that you plan to destroy something beloved. Jut because you want it see more female leads, more POC headline blockbuster films, doesn’t mean you’re trying to destroy James Bond or Star Wars or Doctor Who. Absolutely, i am an advocate for representation in film, everyone would be seen, not just white people, and there is a way to do that. I think Waller-Bridge knows how to walk that line. She’s an excellent writer and understands nuance. I also believe Leslye Headland is a strong enough creator to do the same. Everyone thinks that The Acolyte is going to be some performative dog-whistle because Headland is a staunch feminist and supporter of identity in film, but people forget how well she writes. Russian Doll is a f*cking amazing watch and earns a great deal of support for Headland’s ability to tell a story, to build characters, to make compelling narratives. he fact that she has reportedly been butting head with Kennedy about creative direction kind of makes me think Headland wants to tell a story instead of just push and agenda. Of course, The Acolyte will have a certain, GRRRL Power sin to it, that’s Headland’s brand, but that doesn’t mean it will be bad. That doesn’t mean we’ll get Rey Palpatine redux. It just means our protagonist will have a vagina instead of a pens and that’s fine, as long as that vagina is well written and the narrative around her evolves with eh character. Headland, like Waller-Bridge, can write so i trust that, whatever she’s cooking up, will be decent. Unless Kennedy sabotages it, too, and that’s the issue here.

A lot has come out since Kennedy fired Carano, most of it solidifying my assumptions about Darth Kennedy’s character, or lack thereof. Kathleen Kennedy never intended to carry on the legacy of Star Wars. No, she wanted to destroy it from the very beginning, reshaping it in her own image. I mentioned a long time ago that i believe Kennedy felt slighted working so close to greatness but never being considered great herself, and her utter contempt for Lucasfllm properties has all but proven that. It has been leaked that Rey Palpatine has such prominence and miraculous ability because she is, for all intents and purposes, Kathleen Kennedy’s self insert. Rey is how Kennedy sees herself in the history of Lucas film. Overlooked, abandoned, left to fend for herself, until she finally rises to her potential, destroying the grand Empire Lucas built, leaving something better in her wake. The entire sequel trilogy is just Twilight fan fiction but with space wizards instead of vampires and Kennedy is playing the role of Stephanie Meyers. It’s f*cking ridiculous and really sad, not because of the pathetic, go driven, failed coup, but because it didn’t have to be that way. Rey could have been amazing. The sequels could have been incredible. Kennedy couldn’t let that happen, though, because it would have hinged on paying homage to the House that Lucas built and that was unacceptable. Kennedy had to destroy and, even more egregious, humiliate the original trilogy. It was never about agenda or politics or wokeness. It’s always been about the fragile ego of a small, small, woman.

I think Kennedy’s casting of Waller-Bridge is another one of these attempts to destroy what cam before. I think it’s a rather transparent attempt to undermine confidence in a property her only had peripheral involvement with, masquerading as disingenuous dog whistle for diversity. I think the fandom has gotten it wrong with this one and that the vitriol should be focused on Kennedy and not Waller-Bridge. I feel the same way about Headland and the Acolyte. Those two women are excellent creator and i think they could have worked miracles with Rey’s arc if given the opportunity but Kennedy's disdainful ego won’t let them be who they want. Headland, in every interview i have ever seen, comes across as a legitimate fan of Star Wars. Superficially, she might share certain beliefs with Kennedy but, in execution, i think Headland would deliver her message with aplomb and reverence. Kennedy doesn’t have that capacity, thus we get sh*t like Rise of Skywalker and The High Republic books. Her ability is limited to creating things like a starship named ‘Vessel” co piloted by a rock. I mean, she and her hand-picked “writer” want to put dinosaurs in Star Wars. I don’t believe Headland would do that. I think she’s a better creator than that, just like i believe Waller-Bridge is better than that. I think, if removed from Kennedy’s overbearing influence, Waller-Bridge can do some amazing stuff with Indy 5 and, according to all of these leaks, that might be happening sooner than later. It’s funny, Kathleen Kennedy’s rampage of disdain and sabotage, will end up being crushed under the eight of her latest attempt to sabotage. You can’t write that sh*t any better.

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