Is Steven Soderbergh making ready to affix the “Star Wars” universe? Or is he simply an enormous fan of George Lucas and Tony Gilroy?
The filmmaker behind classics like “Ocean’s 11” and “Visitors,” in addition to the upcoming supernatural horror “Presence,” launched his 2024 watch record final week, as he has accomplished for a few years now, sharing it through his “Soderblog” underneath “Seen, Learn 2024.” Included on the record are a variety of movies, tv exhibits, and shorts, in addition to novels, quick tales, and performs, however of explicit observe are his a number of viewings of “Star Wars” movies throughout the 12 months, seemingly sparked by his watching the Disney+ “Rogue One” spin-off sequence “Andor” from Tony Gilroy. Soderbergh and Gilroy are longtime buddies and collaborators, the previous having helped finance the latter’s “Michael Clayton.” In addition they did a commentary observe collectively for Carol Reed’s “The Third Man” that’s actually price a hear. And judging by Soderbergh’s 2024 movie and TV consumption, he spent a lot of the 12 months enthusiastic about a galaxy far, distant.
On February 3, 2024, Soderbergh began Season 1 of “Andor,” ready every week to proceed and watching one or two episodes each different day, clearly letting it soak in versus bingeing as he did with “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” and “The Gentleman.” After ending the primary 5 episodes of “Andor” although, Soderbergh veered into different “Star Wars” materials, watching “The Phantom Menace,” “Return of the Jedi,” and “Assault of the Clones.” All three of those entries have been poorly acquired upon launch, however have grown in favorability. Transferring previous this stretch, Soderbergh watched Episode 6 of “Andor,” then took an extended break, not returning to the sequence for months, after which bingeing three episodes at a time, ending over the course of two days. A month later, Soderbergh took in a viewing of “The Empire Strikes Again,” then closed out the 12 months by watching “A New Hope” twice, “Revenge of the Sith,” in addition to repeat entries of “The Phantom Menace” and “Assault of the Clones.”
“Star Wars” hasn’t been featured a lot amongst Soderbergh’s lists over the previous few years, so this might simply be a wanted rewatch or maybe he felt impressed to return to the saga after watching his good friend’s present, however followers can be forgiving for daydreaming a couple of world the place Soderbergh is re-familiarizing himself with the world and storylines for a specific function. Even when he’s not concerned with the “Star Wars” universe, he could possibly be prepping for a sci-fi venture that’s related in nature. Additionally of observe, Soderbergh had a number of screenings of his new spy thriller “Black Bag,” which is ready to launch March 14 from Focus Options and stars Cate Blanchett, Michael Fassbender, Regé Jean-Web page, Pierce Brosnan, and Marisa Abela.
Whereas many objects, like Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Dialog” and the Humphrey Bogart/Ingrid Bergman wartime romance “Casablanca,” have come to be anticipated viewing for Soderbergh, he additionally took time to absorb new releases like Alex Garland’s “Civil Battle” and Richard Linklater’s “Hit Man,” starring Glen Powell. This doesn’t even rely all of the awards choices he packed into the top of the 12 months like “All We Think about as Mild,” “Nickel Boys,” and “The Brutalist.”
Learn Soderbergh’s full record right here.
“Presence” releases in theaters January 24 from Neon.