‘Fantastic Four’ Director Josh Trank Explains Why He Left ‘Star Wars’

Josh Trank is having a rough time. Following rumors of issues on the set of Fantastic Four, the director didn't make an appearance at Star Wars Celebration — and that was after rumors had been circulating for a while about his potential exit from the franchise. Following Celebration, it was announced that Trank was officially off the second Anthology film, and then came even more rumors. The director has finally spoken out about his reasons for parting ways with Lucasfilm, and he definitely makes it sound as though it was his decision, not Disney's.

The rumor mill has not been kind to Josh Trank in recent months, including reports of his behavior on the Fantastic Four set and the necessity of reshoots to complete the film. Then there were the whispers that Trank was no longer involved with the second Star Wars Anthology film, followed by his actual departure. There were rumors that Disney had asked Trank not to appear at Celebration, though no official reason for his exit was given.

In a new interview with the LA Times, Trank explains the reason, citing his desire to pursue a smaller project:

I knew that this was going to be questioned, and it was going to come under skepticism as to why I left ‘Star Wars’. And it was hard. It was the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make in my life… I want to do something original after this, because I’ve been living under public scrutiny, as you’ve seen, for the last four years of my life and it’s not healthy for me right now in my life. I want to do something that’s below the radar.

Trank's statement is fairly believable — he has most certainly been the subject of intense scrutiny while working on Fantastic Four, the follow-up to his acclaimed, low-budget sci-fi debut, Chronicle. Going from a name no one knows to a name everyone is constantly analyzing isn't easy.

Trank went on to explain that the people at Disney and Lucasfilm were very understanding about his need to depart the project, and they remain on good terms.

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