The 'Chef' helmer would have said yes if he had been asked to direct 'Star Wars Episode 7' and teases that he would make 'Magic Kingdom' after 'The Jungle Book' is done.
- Mar 11, 2014
AceShowbiz - Jon Favreau addressed "Star Wars" rumor and his delayed project "Magic Kingdom". The director told MTV he would have directed "Star Wars Episode 7" if anyone had actually asked. In a separate chat with Collider, he assured Disney's fans that "Magic Kingdom" was not dead although there's not any new update on the project since his announcement back in 2012.
In that same year, Favreau was rumored as a frontrunner, along with J.J. Abrams and Matthew Vaughan, to direct the new "Star Wars" movie. Although it was "a scary gig" for him due to "the scope and the scale," the "Iron Man" helmer would have said yes because he's more afraid that nobody would pick up the gauntlet.
"I didn't go after it," Favreau said, "but it's one of those things that, as people would say they weren't going to do it, and as there were questions coming my way as to my availability... I was really scared of the idea that nobody was gonna [do it], and so if they had come to me, I don't know how you say no to that thing."
Of J.J. Abrams, Favreau thinks he's a perfect choice for the movie. "He's great because he works with the old generation, and he works with the new generation," he said. "You see what he did with 'Star Trek'. He kept the fans satisfied, because he kept true to the spirit of it, and yet he made it something. That's a hard thing that I don't think anyone can accomplish except for him. He's uniquely qualified for it."
Of "Magic Kingdom", Favreau said he put it on hold to make "The Jungle Book" first. "I really want to do 'Magic Kingdom'. Part of what's complicated about it is you're mixing all of the different lands and characters together but between 'The Avengers' and 'The Lego Movie', there seems to be a way to do it that doesn't confuse the audience," he explained.
"Hopefully I'll get to make that movie with Disney soon. Right now Jungle Book is the thing and hopefully through that partnership it'll lead to getting the other film done because I think 'Magic Kingdom' is a great idea for a film," he added.
Favreau is currently promoting his new film "Chef (2014)" which made its world premiere at SXSW over the weekend. He took a break from Hollywood's big-budgeted flicks to make a fresh indie comedy that is crowded by A-lister cameos like Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Dustin Hoffman, and Sofia Vergara.
