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George Lucas Defends Star Wars from Criticisms That 'It's All White Men': 'Most of the People Are Aliens!'

During a conversation with George Lucas at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, the 'Star Wars' creator addressed some longstanding criticisms of his franchise for a perceived lack of diversity in its cast. 'They would say, ‘It’s all white men.' Most of the people are aliens!' he noted.

During a conversation at the festival, the filmmaking icon spoke to how some critics of his massively successful space opera franchise have pointed out a perceived lack of diversity in the first six Star Wars films, which Lucas either directed or produced himself. The filmmaker said that he never shied from hiring actors of color for his Star Wars projects, between Billy Dee Williams' role as Lando Calrissian in the original trilogy and Samuel L. Jackson's Jedi character Mace Windu in the 2000s-era prequel movies. He even pointed out that each trilogy features strong women leads for protagonists, between Carrie Fisher's Princess Leia and Natalie Portman's Padme Amidala.

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