The Star Wars sequel trilogy – could things have been done differently?

The original Star Wars trilogy will always be a hard act to follow. The sequels, despite being a commercial success and grossing over $4.4 billion worldwide, received a very mixed reception from fans, critics, and even the actors who starred in them.

John Boyega, who played Finn in Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens, Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi, and Star Wars: Episode XI – The Rise of Skywalker, has been unfailingly vocal about his concerns with the trilogy of films. His most recent criticism came about at Florida Supercon 2025, where he was asked by a fan during a panel discussion what he would have done differently if he were a producer overseeing the trilogy. Boyega outlined three substantial changes he would have made as part of his vision of the story.

“If I was a producer on Star Wars from the beginning, you would have had a whole completely different thing,” Boyega began, “first of all, we’re not getting rid of Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, all these people. The first thing we’re going to do is fulfill their story, fulfill their legacy. We’re going to make a good moment of handing on the baton.”

He later furthered his disappointment in Luke Skywalker’s appearance as Force Projection in the climax of The Last Jedi, adding, “But Luke Skywalker wouldn’t be disappearing on a rock. Hell no. Standing there and he’s, like, a projector? I would want to give those characters way more way more.”

Boyega is not the only cast member of the sequels who has echoed their concerns with Luke Skywalker’s character, as Mark Hamill, who starred as him in the original trilogy and the newer films, has continously criticised his character’s arc, famously proclaiming that “he’s not my Luke Skywalker”.

Boyega also criticised the powerscaling of the newer characters in the trilogy, particularly in terms of their abilities with the Force and lightsabres. “Our new characters will not be OP [overpowered] in these movies. They won’t just grab stuff and know what to do with it. No. You’ve got to struggle like every other character in this franchise.” In addition, he emphasised how he would have drawn from the Expanded Universe of Star Wars, which was uncanonized from the franchise following Disney’s purchase of Lucasfilm. “I’d look to the Old Republic stories and see what we can add to the continuation of that. I would definitely want to see Force Unleashed stories in there,” he said. “I would try to expand the Star Wars universe as much as possible while respecting the lore.”

It is significant how the opposition to the trilogy remains vocal despite being released over half a decade ago.

Fans with similar negative sentiments have even pushed towards uncanonizing the sequels, creating numerous online petitions declaring they should be remade or removed entirely. Despite these actions being in all likelihood bearing no fruit, it is significant how the opposition to the trilogy remains vocal despite being released over half a decade ago.

As a fan of the original and the prequel trilogies, I share Boyega’s complaints with the treatment of new and old characters alike in the sequels. The treatment of the iconic character of Luke Skywalker as a decrepit shadow of his former self goes against the legacy of the hero of the original trilogy. It would be naive to suggest that Luke Skywalker would remain exactly the same after so much time had passed, however his character was developed into someone who’s values directly oppose those that he had embodied since the very beginning of Star Wars: A New Hope.

Even his arc over the course of The Last Jedi leading up to his sacrifice is largely underwhelming. His lack of screentime, particularly for such a long-awaited appearance, contributed to the ineffectiveness of his progression back to his established values. Luke’s sacrifice is the only moment where fans catch a glimpse of the character from the originals, however it fell flat when it was revealed he used Force Projection to create an illusion of himself on the battlefield; his battle with Kylo Ren is made unimpressive and his death at the hands of over exerted meditation is a cheap way of subverting expectations.

I further support Boyega’s concerns with the powerscaling of the new characters, particularly Finn and Rey, who throughout the trilogy were constantly made into experts of aspects of the Force and lightsabre duelling that in the older Star Wars canon been established as requiring immense time commitment to learn and even more to master. This is underlined by the characters facing no consequences for the struggles they do face, as rather than depict them learning from their mistakes they simply uncover another power that exceeds that of their enemies.

Regardless of whether you do or don’t share Boyega’s beliefs, I hope we can all agree that he should’ve been a Jedi!

Ultimately, with new Star Wars films such as Star Wars: Starfighter releasing in the future, the divisiveness of the sequel trilogy will continue to underscore discussions about the continuation of the universe. Regardless of whether you do or don’t share Boyega’s beliefs, I hope we can all agree that he should’ve been a Jedi!