Rian Johnson Admits He Didn’t Like Empire Strikes Back When He First Saw It

Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back might be considered by fans and by critics as one of the best entries in the Skywalker saga, but it seems like one Star Wars director didn't quite like the film when he first saw it.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson just recently went on an interview with UPROXX to help promote his latest film, Knives Out, and naturally, the conversation veered towards Star Wars. During the interview, UPROXX noted that the trajectory of Johnson's latest release reminded them of Episode VIII.

The director responded to the comment saying that he was a bit wary to talk about The Last Jedi, saying that he was afraid that he would sound like he was defending anything and that it would put all of the focus on Star Wars instead of his own film.

Somehow, by then the conversation morphed into a Star Wars discussion, and the director admitted that he wasn't that keen on The Empire Strikes Back when he first saw it as a child.

"That's the thing. But, as a kid, I distinctly remember being disappointed by The Empire Strikes Back," the filmmaker admitted. This was most likely because he was a child back then and couldn't fully understand what was going on in the movie.

However, that doesn't really mean that he didn't come to enjoy the film when he became older.

"I think my dad took me when I was really young to see A New Hope. Yeah, no, I remember, especially in the context of Return of the Jedi, which as a kid I adored," Johnson explained, "And so, yeah, I remember very vividly. But then Empire slowly became my favorite one. Look, man, same about you, we were in our twenties when the Prequels came out."

It's interesting to see how age affected Johnson's enjoyment of the Star Wars franchise. When you're young, you may want to see much more vibrant elements in the film. When you're older, you look for subtlety and for better storytelling.

What do you think? Did your enjoyment of Empire Strikes Back change with age? How about The Last Jedi – did it change with time? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below.

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