After the strong reaction following 2017's
Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the sequel gang is back on set, hopefully giving the strong final outing that the franchise deserves.
The Force Awakens' J.J. Abrams is returning to the director's chair for the 9th film in the saga, with the additional challenge of creating a fitting sendoff for Carrie Fisher's General Leia. But even with this challenge, in addition to the predecessor's vocal backlash, it seems as though the cast and crew are more comfortable than ever. Oscar Isaac, who portrays Poe Dameron talked to Indiewire regarding the atmostphere on set:
The way they’ve been shooting it right now is looser than it’s been for the last two times. It does feel like a relief to get on set and feel like, ‘Oh, we can try things.’ It’s a testament to J.J. coming back and feeling confident. There’s less pressure for it to be right. We just want to make a good movie and have a really good time while doing it. Often, you do feel like you’ve got to find your way to make something more alive, but this time, it’s been the opposite, there’s no need to smuggle anything in there.
Ironically, Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy fired Phil Lord and Christopher Miller from Solo: A Star Wars Story for being too loose with improv. From Isaac's statement, it seems like Abrams got it just right.