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Marvelman writes...

Hi Greg. Can you explain the behind-the-scenes reasons for your departure from "Rebels" after only one season? Or, would it be considered unprofessional for you to comment on this?

Greg responds...

Mostly it would be considered NONE OF YOUR DAMN BUSINESS, whether the reason was benign or malevolent. Probably unprofessional, as well. And that's not even counting the fact that I signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement with Lucasfilm.

But mostly, it's just the first reason. I'm happy to answer questions about process and about the show (as long as its not a spoiler). But I feel like on general principle this question crosses a line.

Response recorded on February 11, 2016

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Windona writes...

Hi! I've been a fan of Spectacular Spider-Man, Gargoyles, and Young Justice, but now it's time to ask about the latest show you worked on: Star Wars Rebels.

1) What was it like working on the production team? After all, many of the creative team on Rebels worked together on The Clone Wars, but there's some new blood like you.

2) Related- how much creative input did you have compared to other projects? Obviously you had less than you did in your books, given the dichotomy of working with a team versus working on a novel, but compared to other animated series and adaptations you did, was it more, less, or the same?

3) Now that you've left the production team for season 2 onwards(if that is just a rumor, my apologies for propagating it), what are you looking to doing?

Obviously, it's not a lot because at this time only the first three episodes have aired and asking questions about the season's progression would be like asking for plot points of a movie that's currently running. However, chances are I will be back with more questions after the season. Have a good day!

Greg responds...

1. It was a lot of pressure, but it was also a lot of fun.

2. It's hard to measure this stuff quantitatively. I had two producing partners (Simon Kinberg and Dave Filoni) on the first season (as opposed to one on most of the series I've done), and there's no doubt that Dave was the senior partner, i.e. the guy that George passed the torch to on the animation side. Plus the Lucasfilm Story Group was very involved and Disney XD had input. So I was less autonomous, certainly. But that's not to imply anything negative. It was a grand collaboration, and the writing staff was great too.

3. Earn a living, mostly. :)

But if you haven't already, check out my novels RAIN OF THE GHOSTS and SPIRITS OF ASH AND FOAM. You can also download and purchase the RAIN OF THE GHOSTS full-cast unabridged AudioPlay at Gumroad.com/RainoftheGhosts. Vanessa Marshall (Hera) and Steve Blum (Zeb) are both featured among a stellar cast that includes many actors from Spectacular Spider-Man, Gargoyles and Young Justice.

Response recorded on February 09, 2016

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Christopher Rosa writes...

Hello Greg Weisman this is Christopher Rosa and I have another question for you,

1. I was wondering before you start work on Star Wars Rebels were you a Star Wars fan, did you watch the movies, the tv series, and the now non canon books, and if so does that influential you in writing Star Wars Rebels?

Greg responds...

1. I was a huge fan of the original two movies and of the galaxy far, far away, in general. I had seen the other movies and a handful of episodes of Clone Wars, and I had read Splinter of the Mind's Eye. But I was not familiar with most of the expanded universe. But Episodes IV and V were my major influence for Rebels, which suited Lucasfilm just fine.

Response recorded on February 09, 2016

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Jacob writes...

Why is it that Rebels is including so many characters from the movies in the show? The pilot featured Obi-Wan Kenobi, Droids in Distress featured R2D2 and C3PO as well as Bail Organa, and the trailer for Season 1 showed Luminara? Is this supposed to be a fun little nod to the movies or way of getting views? Ex. tune in to next week's Rebels episode to see R2D2 and C3PO.

Greg responds...

All of the above - but MOSTLY it's because (a) it's one cohesive universe, so it makes sense to include familiar characters where appropriate and (b) how cool was it for us to get to work with Artoo, Threepio and Antony Daniels?!

Response recorded on February 08, 2016

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Clark Cradic writes...

Wanted to let you know I'm pumped for Star Wars Rebels! :) Can't wait to see it! I know you and the rest of the cast and crew shan't disappoint.

Greg responds...

Hoped you liked what you saw and are picking up Star Wars Kanan!

Response recorded on January 19, 2016

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Alex Marcy (Aldrius) writes...

So Greg, today I was privileged enough to get to see the Star Wars Rebels premier at Fan Expo in Toronto. This was actually a pleasant surprise for me as just before I left for the convention I checked the website and saw that they were advertising the premier. Obviously, as a fan of pretty much every show you've ever done I was excited.

So at 1:30 today I got lined up for the premier. Fan Expo is actually fairly well organized so I managed to get in the theater in a timely manner. Immediately I noticed Steve Blum chatting with some people in the front. I knew I was in the right place right away. The way they were seating people, I got a nice seat in the third row very close to the front.

After about 10-20 minutes Mary Franklin came up and introduced herself, handed out some prizes to some people in the audience and then Steve Blum came up. He told us about going to see the first Star Wars film in 1977 and despite how he'd been involved in a lot of Star Wars projects, this was the first one that really struck him in the same way Star Wars did back in the 70's. Afterwards there was a quick pre-recorded message from Dave Filoni, which was cool.

As the premier began I was pretty struck myself. There was no opening and the show jumped straight into the action. I actually knew nothing about the show prior to this except that Vanessa Marshall was in it (due more to lack of time, not lack of interest).

Everything just felt so fresh really. The show's focus on a good ensemble cast was nice, and I liked that pretty much all of them were... well, rogues. None of the characters are exceptionally soft or generous or kind. They have good ends, but the means they achieve those ends at this point at least seems to be a little shady.

I also enjoyed the action. The empire felt very threatening and callous (calus? not sure on the spelling) was a cool bad guy. And the main cast were a good unit. The audience FREAKED THE HELL OUT when Kanan pulled out his lightsaber. And laughed really hard at the 'hairless wookie' bit. (So much so I couldn't hear any of the dialogue for about 30 seconds afterward)

Voice acting was really cool. I liked Ezra a lot. I thought Vanessa Marshall was great. Steve Blum was great. Everyone really fit their characters, it was awesome. Looking forward to seeing more.

Had a lot of fun at the convention and seeing such a great premier was just the cherry on top.

Greg responds...

Ah, I'm jealous. Never got to see it with a crowd. That would have been cool.

And, just for the record, it's Kallus.

Response recorded on November 13, 2015

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btgr writes...

In Star Wars Rebels, what other actors did you considered casting for the role of Kanan? Freddie Prinze Jr. recently claims that back in 2010 he almost gave up on acting because he had a bad experience working with Kiefer Sutherland on 24.

Greg responds...

Um, is that a non-sequitor? Or... oh, I see. If Freddie had given up on acting in a parallel universe, who would we have used, right?

But that's just a big hypothetical, and as readers of this site know, those don't interest me much. In THIS universe, Freddie auditioned and secured the role.

Which brings us back to your original question. The honest truth is, I can't off the top of my head remember who else auditioned. But even if I did remember, I wouldn't say. I think it's uncivil to reveal who lost a given role. It's uncivil to that person, because few people like to see their failures enumerated. And it's uncivil to Freddie who then has to live with internet speculation about what it might have been like Comparisons that exist only in the imagination and cannot be tested.

Response recorded on October 02, 2015

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btgr writes...

I thought up a Star Wars Rebels drinking game in order to celebrate the famous Han Solo line "Don't get cocky":

1. Take a drink everytime someone acts cocky (Two drinks for Ezra Bridger)

2. Take a drink everytime someone smirks (Two drinks for Sabine Wren) &

Someone told me this one:

3. Take a drink everytime someone fails due to overconfidence (Two drinks if they are a darksider)

Greg responds...

Seems very subjective. But then again, I don't drink.

Response recorded on September 30, 2015

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btgr writes...

Would permission be required from you, if Seth Green and Michael Senreich wanted to use Chopper, Kanan, Ezra, Zeb, Sabine and Hera in their animated comedy series "Star Wars Detours"?

Greg responds...

Not from me, no. I have NO control whatsoever. Heck, they wouldn't even need permission from me if they wanted to use Goliath, Elisa and Xanatos in Star Wars Detours. I DON'T OWN THIS STUFF.

Response recorded on July 01, 2015

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Great Big Beautiful Podcast

I'm on the Great Big Beautiful Podcast. Check it out here:http://geekdad.com/2015/04/gbbp-5-greg-weisman/


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WONDERCON 2015

I am fortunate enough to have been invited to be a spotlight guest at WonderCon this year at the Anaheim Convention Center in California from Friday April 03 - Sunday April 05. Here's my schedule for WonderCon 2015:

FRIDAY, APRIL 03, 2015
SIGNING
ARTISTS ALLEY - Table A-31, 11:30am - 12:30pm.

As usual, I will sign anything you bring for free. But I will also be signing and selling copies of my two novels RAIN OF THE GHOSTS and SPIRITS OF ASH AND FOAM. ($10 per book, cash only.) If you purchase both books (signed and personalized for $20 cash total), you get a FREE copy of Kuni Tomita's original development artwork designs from when we developed RAIN as an animated series back at DreamWorks in the '90s. I will also be signing and selling copies of my animation and radio play scripts (from GARGOYLES, MEN IN BLACK, STARSHIP TROOPERS, TEAM ATLANTIS, W.I.T.C.H., THE BATMAN, THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN, DC SHOWCASE: GREEN ARROW, BATMAN: THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD, THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN MEETS GARGOYLES, YOUNG JUSTICE, BEWARE THE BATMAN, GARGOYLES MEETS THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN MEETS YOUNG JUSTICE and KIM POSSIBLE). Each signed and personalized script is $20 cash. I'll also be giving away #RainoftheGhosts AudioPlay postcards for free!

WORKING IN THE STAR WARS UNIVERSE
Room 207 04:00pm - 05:00pm
I'm moderating this panel with panelists: Kevin J. Anderson, Sam de La Rosa, Braden Lamb, Mike Mayhew, Rebecca Moesta & John Ostrander.

SIGNING
ARTISTS ALLEY - Table A-31, 5:30pm - 07:00pm.

SATURDAY, APRIL 04, 2015
SPOTLIGHT ON GREG WEISMAN
Room 213, 11:30am - 12:30pm
Gary Mierianu interviews me about Gargoyles, Young Justice, The Spectacular Spider-Man, Star Wars Rebels, Star Wars Kanan: the Last Padawan, Rain of the Ghosts (novels and AudioPlay) and more. Plus we'll open it up to an audience Q&A at the end.

SIGNING
ARTISTS ALLEY - Table A-31, 1:00pm - 02:30pm.

SIGNING
Mysterious Galaxy Booth 908, 03:00pm - 03:45pm.

MARVEL: NEXT BIG THING
Room 300AB 04:00pm - 05:00pm
I'll be talking about Star Wars Kanan: The Last Padawan, but other panelists will include Sam Humphries, Will Moss & Rick Remender, talking about their stuff.

SIGNING
ARTISTS ALLEY - Table A-31, 5:30pm - 07:00pm.

SUNDAY, APRIL 05, 2015
WARNER ARCHIVE MORE THAN SIDEKICKS!
Room 300AB 01:00pm - 02:00pm
I'll be talking Young Justice and other sidekick stuff with J.M. DeMatteis, D.W. Ferranti, Loren Lester, Gary Mierianu & Matthew Patterson.

SIGNING
ARTISTS ALLEY - Table A-31, 2:30pm - 05:00pm.

That's it. If you're in the area, stop by and say hello!!!


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Kelley writes...

1) Do you ever grow tired or weary of writing and working on only super hero type of shows? I'm assuming working on this new star wars series must of been a breath of fresh air for you?

2)When it comes to the projects you create and produce how do you pick the correct voice director for the project? Do you have a process you go through or that type of thing out of your hands?

Greg responds...

1. They're not that different. And I love super-heroes. It's a bastard genre born from every other type of genre fiction, which allows me to do almost anything.

2. Well, when it's up to me, I tend to go with Jamie Thomason, who's both amazingly talented and a good friend. We have our rapport down to a science, and so it makes the process both fun and phenomenal. But sometimes it's not my call. And then there are a number of other great directors I've also worked with, in particular Ginny McSwain, but also Andrea Romano, Curtis Koller, Dave Filoni, Sue Blu and others. I also enjoy voice directing myself, so if schedules permit, I'm game.

Response recorded on December 12, 2014

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Richard writes...

What is you're favorite starwars space battle and why?

Greg responds...

Is this a quiz?

Response recorded on December 11, 2014

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Dave Newman writes...

Hi Greg,

I want to ask you a question in regards to Star Wars: Rebels. I've very much enjoyed previous shows you have worked on such as Gargoyles, Spectacular Spider-Man and the various productions you have worked on for DC Entertainment and I'm interested in checking out Rebels later this year.

My problem is that I'm worried that not being an ardent Star Wars fan may stand me in poor stead to watch Rebels. I've watched the six big screen "episodes", the Genndy Tartakovsky Clone Wars series and the later Clone Wars movie and the first season of that Clone Wars series. Enjoyed almost all of them but can't say I'm a massive expert on the show. I can name and identify the main characters but couldn't run off the names of all the bounty hunters beyond Boba Fett without risk of error or tell you what the bald guy who works for Lando Calrissian is called, for instance.

My question is; what am I best advised to watch or brush up on in preparation for Rebels so that I'm not TOO behind, or is it being produced as a show that new fans can step aboard with and now be too confused?

Thanks for taking the time to read my question, look forward to your answer. All the best of success to you with this show and all the projects you work on.

Ta!

Dave

Greg responds...

Rebels is absolutely being produced as a show that could easily be your first and only introduction to Star Wars. Obviously, the more you know and have seen, the more you'll appreciate certain aspects of it. But there is literally NOTHING you NEED to have seen to enjoy Rebels.

But if you're looking for recommendations, the canon six features and the Clone Wars television series are good bets. Also John Jackson Miller's novel, A NEW DAWN. Plus, keep an eye out for my STAR WARS KANAN comic book series due out in 2015.

Response recorded on December 06, 2014

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Alexandra Harenberg writes...

I have been following the updates about Star Wars: Rebels, the new television series premiering on Disney XD in November, for a long time now; and I am very excited about the release. The fact that you, Dave Filoni, Simon Kinberg, Steve Lee, Stewart Lee, and all the other awesome people at Lucasfilm and Disney are producing this new series is wonderful. I was hoping for the return of Star Wars after the Clone Wars was canelled!

My question for you, Mr. Wiesman, concerns one of the main characters of Rebels: Zeb Orrelios. When I heard the directing team would be using Ralph McQuarie's original design for Chewbacca, I was totally excited. But it was only after I saw Zeb's completed look that I was blown away.

So here is my question. Are you going to explore his particular species (what Wookieepedia has defined as a Lasat) even further? I have been attempting to imagine what a female of his species would look like, and I will probably be designing concept art for a female Lasat soon enough. Also, are you going to give Zeb Orrelios a love interest at some point in the season? I have been thinking, and I believe that would prove to be an interesting element in the storyline.

One final question. I read that the series was inspired by Hayao Miyazaki's art. Is this true? Because, either way, I definitely can see it in the designs.

Thank you so much for your time, Mr. Weisman. I will be keeping up to date with the show!

~Alexandra

Greg responds...

I love Zeb too!

But there's not much about your question that I can answer. If it takes place in Season One, then, well: NO SPOILERS. And if it takes place after Season One, then, well: I'm afraid I'm not on the series anymore, and I don't know.

I will say that we all know that Zeb is a terrific character, so I can't imagine his background remaining unexplored for long.

And, yes, Dave Filoni did take some inspiration from Miyazaki.

Response recorded on November 12, 2014

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Star Wars Bookworms Podcast

I was on the Star Wars Bookworms Podcast. Had a great time. You can find it here:

http://www.starwarsreport.com/2014/11/06/greg-weisman-interview-swbw-34/


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Star Wars Rebels: Kanan

This weekend at New York Comic Con, Marvel and Lucasfilm announced the new monthly on-going STAR WARS REBELS: KANAN comic book. I will be writing the first five-issue arc, THE LAST PADAWAN. I'm very excited. More info in an interview I did here: http://www.coffeewithkenobi.com/with-new-kanan-comic-marvel-set-to-explore-more-star-wars-lore/


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Anonymous writes...

The "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed" video game series (in which the major events takes place during the the last three years before Episode IV) showed how the Rebellion started, thanks to the unintentional parts of Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine, as well as the efforts of the games' protagonists Galen Marek/Starkiller and his supposed clone (due to lack of evidence to fully support that he is actually a clone or his real self in the second game). Will the events of "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed" video game series be canon in the Star Wars Rebels timeline (even though the TV series will start in 5 BBY)?

Greg responds...

As I understand things, canon starts NOW. And the only things that are guaranteed canon from prior to now are the six films and Clone Wars.

But to be clear, this is not my call. Please don't rail about it here or to me.

Response recorded on October 03, 2014

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ION CANNON PODCAST

I did another PodCast, this one with more of a focus on STAR WARS REBELS: http://www.solosound.net/ioncannon/4042/


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I'm A Fan writes...

Hey Greg! I've watched and absolutely adore the work you've put into both Spectacular and YJ. You're an amazing producer who definitely respects the franchises that you have worked on and deserve more than second-season cancellations :P

Fan appreciation out of the way:

1) How is creating Star Wars Rebels' story and characters compared to YJ's and Spectacular's, considering those were in alternate continuities rather than part of official canon?

2) (If you're allowed to answer this) How much input is there from the higher-ups in Disney/people in control of the Star Wars franchise for the show? (I'm saying this because I was disappointed with Ultimate Spider-Man, also controlled by Disney, which had many good names attached to it, but ultimately felt forced and plainly interfered with by corporate executives who wanted the show to pander to kids.)

I'm looking forward to rebels and hope you have enough creative freedom to work your magic! Thanks for answering!

Greg responds...

1. It was very different. But it's impossible to discuss without spoiling. Ask again after the first season airs.

2. I have no opinion on Ultimate, which I haven't seen. But rest assured, Lucasfilm was calling the shots on Rebels.

Response recorded on September 02, 2014

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J.J. writes...

Hey Greg, have a few questions on the business side of things:
You've said that Cartoon Network and Warner Bros. insist that Young Justice is NOT cancelled, just not picked up. Even if they do pick it up how would that work?
1. You've obviously moved on to work on Star Wars: Rebels along writing Your Rain of Ghost series. If they were to approach you on continuing the show would you be able to? I mean you've said that you and the production team created a bible of sorts for future story lines and character arcs, so you wouldn't have to start from scratch… but that is a lot of work.
2.Would you continue on doing Star Wars Rebels while someone else worked on the show?(The Goliath Chronicles) Or would you still be allowed to juggle both shows? (As unrealistic as that sounds)
I ask this because unlike Spec-Spidey, which was cancelled for legal reason, YJ had no real reason to end. I'm sure most of us would have been more than content with a continuation of the comics set during season 3.
Lighter stuff:
3. Now that you've finished Spirits of Ash and Foam, are you planning out and writing book 3 currently or are you waiting on the sales numbers on the first two books to get the go ahead and get seriously started?
Thanks for the time. Don't have Disney XD so I'll have to wait to catch Star Wars: Rebels online.

Greg responds...

1. It is a lot of work, so it would all depend on timing. I often have windows of availability, and when these windows open, I'm usually at one or more places trying to get something going on Young Justice or Gargoyles, etc.

2. This is all too hypothetical to answer. I can generally do a comic or two while working on a series, if the schedule isn't too brutal on one or the other (or both). But I can't answer these questions in a vacuum.

3. I probably should wait, since the third book has not been ordered. But I have begun doing the research for Book Three of Rain, i.e. Masque of Bones.

Response recorded on July 15, 2014

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Wookiehunter writes...

Is it possible, that Rebels doesnt end at the beginning of a New Hope and will go further to tell us more storys?

Greg responds...

SPOILER REQUEST. NO COMMENT.

Response recorded on June 18, 2014

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simone writes...

Do you think if I call cartoon network on a regular and complain about how unfair they are for taking down YJ before we was able to have a 3rd/4th/5th season but yet they have all these other shows like bakugan still coming on.? Im not trying to down play them but seriously. ?! Why that play all the time but yet there is never a rerun of YJ .?? It came on on Saturday and Sunday morning. ..that's it.! I wouldn't blame the ratings if its so low.. who really wakes up at 8 or 9 to watch that show (could have came on at 10, not sure since it been so long) unless they know it was going to play that time.?

And that's another thing.. how is anybody suppose to know is there was gonna be another season if y'all don't advertise it.? I realized that y'all didn't do that for the 2nd season or if you was gonna have one (unless I looked it up on Google or something). There was times were I didn't know if a show was coming on that Saturday morning and I would have woke up for nothing ... just upset and sad.. I think that's another reason why y'all did not have that many ratings... we never really knew when it would come on unless we look it up. Please answer ... I really wanna know

Greg responds...

I've lost track of exactly what question you "really wanna know" the answer for. So I'll try to comment on what I can.

I think we can all agree that the series didn't receive as much promotion as we might have liked. Frankly, no show I've ever worked on has ever received as much promotion as I would have liked. None. (Although Star Wars Rebels may be the exception. Lucasfilm has quite the machine up and running to create buzz.) That's just the way things go in a business where promoting an animated series is an additional expense that most networks have decided they can't afford.

Whether you like Bakugan or not, keep in mind it's an acquisition, not an original series. It's considerably cheaper because the U.S. network doesn't have to pay for production, only for a license fee to air it in America.

Calling CN to complain daily does NOT sound like a good plan. Imagine if someone did that to you?

Response recorded on May 09, 2014

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Geek Cave Podcast

Did a podcast at the Geek Cave, where we discussed everything from Gargoyles to Star Wars Rebels to Rain of the Ghosts.

Find it here: http://geekcavepodcast.com/post/85018863882/geek-cave-podcast-episode-43-greg-weisman-the

Or you can download it directly here: http://thegeekcave.podbean.com/mf/web/tm4wd9/GC43.mp3


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Richard writes...

What was you're favorite star wars space and why?

Greg responds...

My favorite "star wars space"? I'm sorry, I'm not sure what you mean. My favorite movies were Episodes IV and V.

Response recorded on April 29, 2014


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