George Lucas Retiring: Decision Comes After Industry Snubs "Red Tails" Due to All Black Cast

George Lucus is best-known for producing films like Star Wars and Indiana Jones, but there is one movie that was so important to him that hit put up the millions to do it himself! And when studios snubbed him financially because of his cast selection, he shelled out millions more to get the project done.
What movie could possibly drive this top-notch producer to spend about $93 million out of pocket and why wouldn’t a studio support something that Lucas was so passionate about? Well, the movie is Red Tails and the reason is the all-black cast.
“I’ve been wanting to do Red Tails for 20 years, and we’ve finally got the means to showcase the skill of the Tuskegee pilots,” Lucas said. “We’re working on techniques which will give us the first true look at the aerial dogfighting of the era. And our top-notch cast will really make this story special.”
Red Tails hit theaters today and tells the story of the first African American aerial unit during World War II. The movie stars Cuba Gooding Jr., Terrence Howard, Bryan Cranston, Nate Parker, David Oyelowo, Tristan Wilds, Aml Ameen and Cliff Smith. This sounds like a solid cast and you would think that the country had moved past discrimination, but apparently it hasn’t.
This isn’t just insulting to the people in the cast. George Lucas took this very personally. He told the New York Times that he is retiring from big-budget movies to focus on smaller art-house films. This decision came shortly after Red Tails was denied support.
Now, not only is it important to watch the movie to support the cast, but also to let one of the most respected producers in the business go out with a bang. American actor and singer, Jason Weaver, recently opened up to StarCam Radio, stressing what a big deal this film really is.
“It’s so important for people to go out and support this film. This is a film talking about the black experience in world war two and it’s so important. George Lucas put his own money behind it,” said Weaver. “It’s important for people to come out and support it ‘cause Hollywood today does not believe that people will come out and support an all-black ensemble cast. This is a very, very important moment in Hollywood history, so please go out and see it.”
You can check out the trailer for the World War II tribute below. StarCam wants to know what you think about the situation. Are you excited about the movie? Do you think the industry did the right or wrong thing? Are you bummed to see Lucas’s big productions come to an end? Sound off in the comment section!
Source: http://blog.starcam.com/post/Red-Tails-George-Lucas-Retires.aspx