How Oscar Isaac Really Feels About The Star Wars: The Last Jedi Backlash

To make it clear right out of the gate: Rian Johnson's 2017 sci-fi epic "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" is the second-best "Star Wars" movie, after George Lucas' 1977 original. It came when the "Star Wars" film series was 40 years old, and the franchise had become an enormous, octopus-like merchandising monster with tentacles everywhere. Disney had recently purchased "Star Wars" and was doing everything in its power to ensure it remained a permanent part of the entertainment landscape. 

"The Last Jedi" stepped in to declare that constant, ongoing wars needed to end. The Jedi should all die, the First Order should stop being gentle, and the wars should end. If the titular star wars were to continue, it would mean an endless cycle of fascism and rebellion, murdering one another to no end. "The Last Jedi" seemed to be addressed directly to "Star Wars" fans, and angrily so. It declared that fans' nostalgia for constant war was an unhealthy thing to carry, and it was time to give up. Put "Star Wars" down. It doesn't care what you think. Burn the Jedi texts. It's a glorious and poetic movie, deconstructing itself from within. 

Naturally, many fans hated that, and there was a great deal of backlash. Johnson didn't address what some fans assumed were big mysteries left over from 2015's "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," and others whined about its plot. Racists complained about its diversity, but racists' opinions don't count. 

Oscar Isaac played Poe Dameron in "The Last Jedi," and he — very, very tactfully — talked about the fan backlash on the "Happy. Sad. Confused." interview series. He said, in a noncommittal way, that he can relate to the way fans feel about "The Last Jedi," and how they might have taken it personally.

Oscar Isaac seemed to know exactly how to talk to the press, and exactly how to spin a movie that fans might hate. And, to be fair, "The Last Jedi" declares, quite directly, that hanging on to "Star Wars" fandom is a foolish thing to do. The film's villain, Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), even speaks the film's thesis aloud: "It's time to let old things die," he said. "Snoke, Skywalker, the Sith, the Jedi, the Rebels; let it all die." It was time to let "Star Wars" end. 

Oscar Isaac played the hotshot pilot Poe Dameron in "The Force Awakens" and in "The Last Jedi," and he diplomatically said that he adored the entire process. Initially, he said: 

"My favorite part was the experience of doing ['The Force Awakens']. It was so wild. There was so much excitement, and everything was new. [...] The singularity of that moment was amazing; getting to meet [director] JJ [Abrams], becoming close with him, John [Boyega], and Daisy [Ridley], and reuniting with Adam since he had done ['Inside Llewyn Davis'] with me. It was all just such an exciting time." 

When asked about the fan backlash to "The Last Jedi," Isaac was asked if any fans had ever attacked him for being involved in a controversial project. He answered, very briefly: 

"Not really. I've grown up with fans and geeks. That's basically been my family, so I know how much ownership people feel over these stories. But I also loved doing 'The Last Jedi' with Rian."

Isaac didn't express any opinions about the story or the themes of "The Last Jedi." He merely said that he enjoyed working on it. It was the least controversial way to answer the question. 

Oscar Isaac continued, by saying, equally inoffensively, that: 

"Getting to meet [Rian Johnson], he's so laid-back, sweet, and funny. He was really trying to make it his own, and I loved that. And getting to have Benicio [del Toro] in it, too, of course. It was an amazing experience to spend that much time in London. Yeah, it was great."

In case anyone might have forgotten the kerfuffle over "The Last Jedi," there was a very good reason for the interviewer to ask Oscar Isaac if fans were coming after him. We must recall the experiences of actress Kelly-Marie Tran, who played a Resistance engineer named Rose Tico in "The Last Jedi." She became a major part of the story and even planted a kiss on Finn (Boyega) during the film's climax. Weird Alt-Right racists hated Rose. They organized a review-bombing campaign on the film, and Tran was badgered off social media. There was so much rage surrounding the movie; of course, interviewers wanted to know if Oscar Isaac had received any of it. 

Isaac likely knew that if he said the wrong thing, he would invite similar badgering, so he backed off the subject. He said he liked working on the movies, and that was that.

The review bombs and toxic fan reactions didn't stop "The Last Jedi" from making $1.334 billion at the box office, but the anger over the movie seemingly caused some panic at Lucasfilm. The follow-up movie, JJ Abrams' 2019 film "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" was as bland and as predictable as they come, offering 0% new ideas to the "Star Wars" canon. Between "Last Jedi" and "Rise of Skywalker," everyone was disappointed.