JJ Abrams wants Ava DuVernay to direct a “Star Wars” movie

Writer/director JJ Abrams says he wants to see Ava DuVernay direct a 'Star Wars' movie...

Dec 10, 2015

Recently, JJ Abrams did an interview with Nerdist, and when he was asked about potential female directors or writers he would like to see on Star Wars, his reaction was immediate: Ava DuVernay.

“To me, the knee-jerk reaction if I had to [name someone] is Ava DuVernay, who I think would just kill it,” Abrams said.

“She is as much a fan of genre movies … and hearing her talk about, not just Star Wars, but hearing her talk about those kinds of films is evidence that she would just kill it,” he continued. “When you look at her work inSelma, which was as well told, sophisticated and humane as I think has come out in the last decade, I mean, she is just — if she can do that story that well, there’s no question she’d kill [a Star Wars] movie.”

For her part, DuVernay reacted with this tweet: “The force is strong with this one. xo”

https://twitter.com/AVAETC/status/674629411296047104

The question about female directors and writers came because of the current Star Wars lineup, which is entirely male. Gareth Edwards will be working on Rogue One, set for a 2016 release; Rian Johnson on Episode VIII, set for a 2017 release; and Colin Trevorrow on Episode IX, set for a 2019 release.