Liam Neeson Says ‘Star Wars’ Franchise Damaged By Superfluous Spin-Offs – Deadline

Star Wars actor Liam Neeson has spoken out against the explosive growth of the Lucasfilm franchise, expressing the belief that it’s been damaged by the constant churning out of spin-offs.

Neeson’s comments came during a recent appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen which you can view above). Prompting them was a question as to whether he’s interested in the prospect of a spin-off centered on his Jedi Master, Qui-Gon Jinn. “No, I’m not,” said Neeson, matter-of-factly. “There’s so many spin-offs of Star Wars. It’s diluting it to me, and it’s taken away the mystery and the magic in a weird way.”

Neeson admitted that “it was nice” to reunite with Ewan McGregor last year for an appearance on his spin-off Obi-Wan Kenobi that had him saying all of two lines. “That was cool. I loved it,” said the actor. But as far as his interest in Star Wars appearances at this point, “that’s it.”

First appearing as Qui-Gon Jinn in 1999’s Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Neeson also recently reprised his role for an episode of Disney+’s animated Tales of the Jedi. His comments speak to the constant output of Star Wars projects across film and television, which intensified following Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm in 2012, and Disney+’s first venture into live-action Star Wars series with The Mandalorian.