Star Wars and its online community | Between wonder and the dark side

Star Wars: The Phantom Menace hit the scene 25 years ago, coinciding with the beginnings of the active online community. On the eve of the release of the series The Acolytewhich already divides opinion on social networks, The Press spoke with three fervent fans of the universe created by George Lucas.

Introduction to the Force

Alexandre Forest was only 6 years old when Jedi and Sith took over cinemas with the release of The Phantom Menace, in 1999. “It was furious madness! Everyone was talking about it. I ended up seeing him a little later at home and found it disgusting. The podrace, the aesthetic… even Jar Jar Binks made me laugh. »

Jean-Michel Berthiaume, slightly older, was already a geek assumed at that time and he made it a “duty” to know Star Wars. « The premieres of episodes IV, V and VI [à leur retour en salle en 1997] were parties! I was 15, 16 years old and I still remember it. »

Joany Richer indicates for her part that she got to know the Skywalker family “late in life, in 2006”. That year, a friend initiated it through a marathon of the five films then existing. “I fell in love with the hero’s quest, which is quite universal. […] But it’s only since the pandemic that I’ve admitted my feelings a little more geekiness, which took on important proportions with my piece dedicated to Star Wars. »

The three express their passion in various ways. Under the name Lady in the Galaxy, Joany shares her collection on her social networks, with accounts totaling 19,000 subscribers. Alexandre, a comedian, draws on the great comic potential of Star Wars for his shows and his columns. Doctor in semiology and specialist in popular culture, Jean-Michel Berthiaume regularly deals with the phenomenon in addition to having contributed to the documentary In the shadow of the Star Wars Kid.

This passion, born from well-known films, is nourished by an infinite number of cultural products – series, books, comics, video games, toys, amusement parks, etc. – which both clarify and push the limits of the very distant galaxy.

“It’s the imagination behind all this that fascinates me. There are some very good ones like Andor and means like The Book of Boba Fett. Some stories are poorly told, but the universe remains coherent, believes Alexandre Forest. At this point, it’s the variations on the theme and other people’s views that interest me. The trilogy of novels, Thrawn Ascendancy, by Timothy Zahn, for example, offers a different perspective. » “For me, Star Wars equals a happy time. I’m glad I didn’t finish,” adds Joany Richer.

Attacks from toxic fans

This doesn’t seem to be the case for all fans. The amount of derogatory comments that accompany each publication related to new Lucasfilm creations is disturbing.

In the last five years, Star Wars has mainly been deployed on Disney+. We notice in series a greater diversity of artisans in front of and behind the camera than in feature films. African-American actress Moses Ingram, who plays Reva Sevander in the series Obi-Wan Kenobireceived hundreds of death threats on his Instagram account following the broadcast of the first episodes, in May 2022. In support of his colleague, Ewan McGregor, interpreter of the title role, published a video on the official pages of Star Wars claiming that the authors of these “horrible racist” messages are not real fans.

Watch the Ewan McGregor video

Despite everything, the series The Acolytewhich has several actors of color and women in its cast, is the subject of similar treatment, even though it has not yet been offered to the public.

« Tu peux facilement tomber dans une spirale sur YouTube de fans qui répètent que les personnages féminins étaient plus intéressants avant quand ils étaient teintés de sexisme », affirme Alexandre Forest.

« Je me fais parfois demander de prendre des photos en bobettes avec un casque de Stormtrooper ou en slave Leia [dans Return of the Jedi], says Joany Richer. When I post on my page, it’s usually positive, but if I post in a Facebook group, I get comments like: “She wants to show off” or “She holds her lightsaber like a girl”. »

This kind of behavior is seen in other online communities, but what sets Star Wars apart is its duration over time. “It’s been 25 years now! We can almost tell the history of the internet with the story of Star Wars on the internet, underlines Jean-Michel Berthiaume. We always hear more people who complain than those who are satisfied. A section of the community kept Star Wars alive while it was out of production. We must thank the fanfiction creators, the cosplay enthusiasts. It’s risky to overvalue those who hate everything and to make those who make the universe grow invisible. »

Hope is renewed

During our adult discussion, the notion that young people are the target audience for the majority of Star Wars-related creations came up a few times.

Joany and Alexandre discuss the rant, five years ago, of Freddie Prinze Jr., who lends his voice to Kanan Jarrus in the animated series Rebels. With sincerity and crude words, he maintains that the frustration of certain fans emanates from the fact that the new proposals do not age at the same rate as them and that they cannot accept it.

Watch Freddie Prinze Jr.’s rant.

Jean-Michel Berthiaume offers his own theory: “They’re not mad at Star Wars, they’re mad at themselves because they’re no longer amazed.” »

According to him, the final scene of The Last Jedi, where we see a boy grab a broom and bring it towards him using the Force and then lift it towards the starry sky like a lightsaber, represents hope for the next generation of fans. “It’s crazy that in the work, there is the most beautiful commentary on the work. »

“I love Star Wars, but you have to remember that it’s for kids. It’s supposed to be happy. If it doesn’t amuse you, don’t crush the people who enjoy it,” concludes Joany Richer, who can’t wait to see if her children will be as amazed as she is when they discover the films that have changed forever.

The first two episodes of The Acolyte will be released on Disney+ on June 4.