It’s probably not all that surprising to learn that riffing with George Lucas in the 1980s was slightly more creatively freewheeling than crafting a series for Disney in 2022, but at least we have firm confirmation now. Bob Dolman, who wrote Willow and was part of the writer’s room for the reboot series, told The Hollywood Reporter that the mammoth corporate entity was pretty interested in the day-to-day on their investment.
“It felt that the studio was over our shoulder quite a bit — the studio being Disney and also Lucasfilm,” Dolman said. “They had good input; they had good notes. You have to move a series along, and you have to be involved in it. But I felt like we weren’t left alone enough just to toss ideas around and have the kind of freedom that I had when I was working with George and Ron. And not be worried about whether or not an idea was good or bad, but just trying things out and taking a chance and having the courage to even find a bad idea, knowing that it could lead to a good idea.”
“There are a lot of voices, and some of them aren’t necessarily voices that know more than the people that have been hired,” he went on to say. “But those voices are heard, and notes are given. In the writing room of Willow the TV series, there was constant input from other sources outside of the room. So it felt to me like we were never really alone in the room.”
Dolman was overall positive about the experience — and who wouldn’t be? His criticism is measured, but it also turns out that Disney and Lucasfilm suits might know a thing or two about what sitting on shoulders because the series is currently a big critical hit. Way to go, suits! Willow is on Disney+ as of today, November 30th.
(via The Hollywood Reporter)