On August 15, 2015 it was announced that director Colin Trevorrow would helm the third installment of the new Star Wars trilogy, the still-untitled Episode IX. Just over two years later, that's no longer the case; Lucasfilm and Trevorrow have now parted ways, with the former releasing an official statement reading, “Colin has been a wonderful collaborator throughout the development process but we have all come to the conclusion that our visions for the project differ.”

RELATED: Director Colin Trevorrow Exits Star Wars: Episode IX

It’d take a special kind of cynicism to pass judgement on a film that’s still in pre-production. We won’t know whether Trevorrow’s removal from the film will factor into the final product's quality until May 2019 (although considering the circumstance, it wouldn’t be surprising if it was pushed back to December). However, this is now the second time this year alone that Lucasfilm has parted ways with one of its directors, after Christopher Miller and Phil Lord were fired from the Han Solo spin off movie and replaced with Ron Howard back in June. Unlike Trevorrow, however, Miller and Lord were removed six months into production, with much of the film reportedly having been shot.

Of course, Episode IX's production problems extend past its directors. Originally, The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson was slated to write a story treatment, with Trevorrow and his writing partner Derek Connolly later being announced as the film's screenwriters. According to the Hollywood Reporter, "Script issues have continued to be the continuing sore spot with Episode IX’s development," with This Is England's screenwriter Jack Thorne the latest person hired for rewrites.

Episode IX, along with the untitled Han Solo movie, aren't the only Star Wars films with problems behind the scenes. Director Josh Trank was also fired from an untitled spin off film, and after watching Rogue One many keen-eyed viewers noted that there was footage from the film’s trailers that didn’t appear in the final version, scenes which were alter revealed to have been cut from the final edit. Tony Gilroy was brought in as a script doctor and to lead extensive reshoots for the film.

So should we be worried about these directorial and production change ups?

Well... maybe.

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Star Wars: Episode IX - Worry, Yes; Panic, No

It’s a hard question to answer because we don’t know what the depth of the creative differences between the studio and Trevorrow. For all we know, he was fired because he refused to budge on his desire to make BB-8 speak with a thick Brooklyn accent. Lucasfilm is working in the best interest of Disney's brand, and for all we know, Trevorrow’s intended vision simply wasn't a good fit for the franchise. Looking at the rest of his filmography, Episode IX may have been a pandering nostalgia trip like Jurassic World, or a monotonous slog like The Book of Henry. It also had the potential to be a really unique take on Star Wars that just didn’t jive with what Lucasfilm wants. Trevorrow, like Lord and Miller, may have strayed too far from the intended path, a move that doesn’t seem to fly with the studio.

RELATED: Star Wars: Luke Reveals His Dark Side in New Last Jedi Image

Obviously, there are limits to both creative freedom and how much a studio should interfere with its directors. The Prequel Trilogy is what happens when you let a creatively bankrupt director run wild and do whatever he wants. George Lucas said it best in his own reaction to The Phantom Menace: “I may have gone too far in a few places.”

Star Wars Last Jedi Luke

It’s a weird position for Lucasfilm; maintain too loose a grip, and you run the risk of getting something whose individual personality overwhelms the final product and doesn’t feel like a Star Wars movie. Squeeze too tight, and you run the risk of getting something that feels like a safe, paint-by-the-numbers Star Wars movie with zero personality.

Let’s step back from Star Wars for a second and take a look at its most impressive running mate in the current pop culture landscape: the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Within the last decade, Marvel has gone from just another upstart studio trying to score big with cinematic superhero adaptations to becoming the cinematic superhero monopoly. Characters like Iron Man or Captain America are now household names, just as recognizable as Darth Vader or Chewbacca.

We draw this comparison between Lucasfilm and Marvel Studios, because the former has the option to either learn or repeat the mistakes of the latter. Specifically, Lucasfilm needs to look at what happens when the studio heavily interferes with a creator’s vision and what happens when you have faith in their ability to tell a story.

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What Lucasfilm Can Learn from Marvel's Success - and Mistakes

In 2014, director Edgar Wright announced that he would no longer be a part of Ant-Man (a film he’d been working on since 2006) due to creative differences between himself and Marvel Studios. Speaking of his departure Wright mused, “I wanted to make a Marvel movie, but I don’t think they really wanted to make an Edgar Wright movie.”

Now, Ant-Man is not a bad film, but it definitely feels restrained. It lacks personality and memorability, and there are moments clearly inserted due to studio mandate, the scene where Ant-Man fights the Falcon at the Avenger’s compound being the most obvious example. You can tell that it’s an uneven amalgam of visions and ideas. The parts of Wright’s original script that made it through the re-writes stick out like sore thumbs, and leave you craving for what could have been.

Ant Man Paul Rudd

If Ant-Man represents the best-case result when dealing with studio meddling and artistic compromises, Avengers: Age of Ultron represents the worst. Director and writer Joss Whedon has made no attempt to hide that he had a difficult time during the production of the Avengers sequel. “I was so beaten down by the process,” Whedon said. “Some of that was conflicting with Marvel, which is inevitable. A lot of it was about my own work, and I was also exhausted.” During production of Age of Ultron, Whedon and the studio constantly butted heads over what should and shouldn't be included in the final cut, with the former wanting to keep the scenes set on Hawkeye’s farm, while the latter fought to keep the scene where Thor and Dr. Selvig visit a magic cave.

RELATED: Star Wars Novel Hints That Last Jedi Character Is LGBT

On the flipside of Ant-Man and Age of Ultron, you have James Gunn seemingly doing whatever he wants with the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, which has resulted in two of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's strongest films. Apparently, Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi had never seen the previous Thor movies, and going by what we've seen in the trailers thus far, has created the most idiosyncratic film of the MCU.

Star Wars is a brand, and the purpose of its products is to further service the image of that brand. Wright’s observation that Marvel wasn't keen on making an Edgar Wright film feels especially relevant in the wake of Lord and Miller’s firing from the Han Solo spinoff movie, again due to creative differences. The directing duo were reportedly removed as a result of excessive improvisation that was causing the film to stray too far from Lawrence Kasdan’s script. They wanted to make a Star Wars movie, but Lucasfilm didn’t want to make a Lord and Miller movie. At the same time, these changes might be justifiable; after all, The Force Awakens is both undeniably a Star Wars film and a J.J. Abrams film. Hopefully it's the same case when it comes to The Last Jedi and director Rian Johnson.

Right now, the more important question to ask is whether Lucasfilm is looking for creative voices to tell new and unique stories within the Star Wars universe, or if it just wants a director who will keep his or her head down and do what they're told. The firing of Lord, Miller and Trevorrow, along with the post-production changes to Rogue One, sends a message that a creator’s vision doesn’t seem to matter unless it specifically fulfills what the studio wants. If a director refuses to compromise with the studio, they can be replaced with someone who will. It’s a depressing notion; it’s not telling a story, it’s ticking boxes. At what point can you justifying curbing a director’s creativity and imagination in favour of servicing a brand? Lucasfilm needs to find a balance between allowing its creatives to tell the unique stories they want to tell, while still remaining true to the Star Wars brand.