Screenwriter Stuart Beattie has revealed George Lucas' role in Solo: A Star Wars Story, the franchise's biggest box office bomb to date. In general, the Star Wars movies have been box office hits, but the exception was Solo - which grossed only $393.2 million in global box office. Behind-the-scenes drama meant the film didn't even break even.

Appearing on the YouTube channel Star Wars Theory, screenwriter Stuart Beattie revealed George Lucas' role in Solo: A Star Wars Story. Watch the portion of the video or read his comments below:

Beattie, who was a writer on the scrapped Obi-Wan Kenobi film trilogy, says Lucas was "partially involved" in Solo: A Star Wars Story since "he was the one who started" it. Lucas began developing the project and brought it to Lawrence Kasdan, who co-wrote the screenplay, before he sold Lucasfilm to Disney. Read Beattie's full comments below:

He was partially involved in Solo, because he was the one who started that. He brought that to Larry Kasdan... It was already in development when they bought it from George.

What George Lucas' Solo Involvement Means For Star Wars

The box office bomb dates back to Lucas' era

Solo was the first Star Wars film to bomb at the box office, and it caused Lucasfilm to course-correct. Several factors contributed to this outcome, including the film's release shortly after fan backlash to Star Wars: The Last Jedi and a weak marketing strategy designed not to compete with Avengers: Infinity War. Lucasfilm's Kathleen Kennedy has often attributed the movie's performance to viewers rejecting the idea of recasting Han Solo, although Alden Ehrenreich's performance was tremendous.

Disney only greenlit Solo because of Han's naming scene, when an Imperial recruiter gave him his surname because he was alone. According to Lawrence Kasdan, Disney CEO Bob Iger was so taken with that part of Han's backstory that he insisted the film be produced immediately, although this seems rather a weak hook for an entire movie. Given Kasdan was asked to work on the project by Lucas himself, it's reasonable to assume the problems do date back to Solo's inception.

Would George Lucas' Star Wars Have Been Any Less Controversial Than Disney's?

Probably Not, But For Different Reasons

There's been intense debate over Disney's creative direction and perceived commercialization of Star Wars. The latest Solo news serves as a reminder that Lucas was no stranger to controversy as well; the prequels stirred discussions about artistic integrity and storytelling depth too. Solo: A Star Wars Story's origin is an intriguing hint that Lucas could have potentially repeated some of Disney's mistakes, given he set the ball rolling on a movie that failed to perform.

Source: Star Wars Theory