JJ Abrams has claimed that the prominent critics of Star Wars: The Last Jedi are threatened by the strong influence of women in the sci-fi sequel.
Despite receiving critical acclaim upon release last December, the second instalment of the sequel trilogy proved extremely divisive among fans – with some even calling for it to be deleted and remade.
But Abrams, who directed The Force Awakens and will return for the as-yet-untitled Episode 9, believes that critics are uncomfortable with the strong influence of female characters including Princess Leia and Rey.
“Their problem isn’t Star Wars, their problem is being threatened”, he told IndieWire.
“Star Wars is a big galaxy, and you can sort of find almost anything you want to in Star Wars. If you are someone who feels threatened by women and needs to lash out against them, you can probably find an enemy in Star Wars.
“You can probably look at the first movie that George [Lucas] did and say that Leia was too outspoken, or she was too tough. Anyone who wants to find a problem with anything can find the problem. The internet seems to be made for that.”