George Lucas revealed that he had planned three additional Star Wars films before deciding to retire from filmmaking, a decision that ultimately led to Disney acquiring the franchise. Lucas had previously alluded to having sequel trilogy ideas, though nothing concrete materialized before the 2012 sale of the series to Disney for $4 billion.
Lucas stated that his decision to retire was linked to the creation of The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art. "When I did this, I decided to retire from making movies," Lucas explained in a conversation with CBS. "Which was a big deal because I had three more Star Wars to make. But I realized that I was running out of time, and I did want to make this museum, and I'd spent a lot of time developing digital technology for the movie business."
Lucas's early concepts for the Star Wars sequel trilogy underwent significant revisions over time. Initial ideas, such as Luke Skywalker having a sister and a final confrontation with Emperor Palpatine, were eventually incorporated into "Return of the Jedi." By the 1980s, Lucas recognized the expansive scope of the story and opted to focus solely on the original trilogy. Following the production of the prequel trilogy, Lucas expressed a lack of enthusiasm for continuing the saga further.
While Disney eventually produced the third Star Wars trilogy, the studio incorporated elements that Lucas himself had originated. These included plans for the story to be set approximately 30 years after "Return of the Jedi," with the return of Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher. Lucas had also envisioned Luke's role as being "much more ethereal," potentially existing on another plane of existence, which aligns with the character's eventual fate in the sequel films.