George Lucas explains why retiring from filmmaking was difficult: he had three more Star Wars films planned

George Lucas has discussed his decision to step away from filmmaking to focus on the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, which recently opened in California. The museum features an extensive collection including Star Wars memorabilia.

In an interview with CBS Sunday Morning, Lucas explained the weight of his choice. "Well, I'm 82, so there is a limit," he said. "When I did this, I decided to retire from making movies, which was a big deal because I had three more Star Wars to make. But, I realized that I was running out of time, and I did want to make this museum. And I'd spent a lot of time developing digital technology for the movie business. You know, all art depends on technology."

Lucas had conceived a sequel trilogy that would have centered on Darth Maul operating as a crime syndicate boss. However, after selling Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012, the studio pursued a different creative direction. Disney's sequel trilogy comprised The Force Awakens (2015), The Last Jedi (2017), and The Rise of Skywalker (2019).

Star Wars continues on screen with Ahsoka season 2, arriving on Disney Plus on January 20. The season will explore the Mortis gods storyline from Clone Wars, examining themes of power and how it is wielded.