Angry fans petition to erase 'Last Jedi' from Star Wars canon
Hated "The Last Jedi?" This is the online petition for you and everyone else who liked the Star Wars prequels more than the new film.
When Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) isn't depicted the way Star Wars fans want, they create petitions.
Not every Star Wars fan loved "The Last Jedi." In fact, even though movie critics were overall very positive about the new Star Wars film, fans seem to be split on their opinions on how the film portrayed Luke Skywalker, Rey, Finn and the rest of the characters.
And when Star Wars fans get angry, they start online petitions. Case in point, the new Change.org petition called "Have Disney strike Star Wars Episode VIII from the official canon" by Henry Walsh.
"Episode VIII was a travesty," Walsh wrote when the petition launched. "It completely destroyed the legacy of Luke Skywalker and the Jedi. It destroyed the very reasons most of us, as fans, liked Star Wars. This can be fixed. Just as you wiped out 30 years of stories, we ask you to wipe out one more, 'The Last Jedi.' Remove it from canon, push back Episode IX and remake Episode VIII properly to redeem Luke Skywalker's legacy, integrity and character."
While the likelihood of Disney or Lucasfilm taking this petition seriously isn't that strong, more than 27,000 fans have already signed it. Neither Disney nor Lucasfilm responded to requests for comment.
The attention grabbed by the petition seems to have surprised Walsh, who on Tuesday dialed back his outrage somewhat. "While supporting this petition is important, and I too have a deep love for Star Wars, I recommend we maybe send this in a new direction," he wrote in an update.
"There are tons of people, and causes, who need help, and we are here for Star Wars," he added, urging supporters of the petition to look at other petitions on Change.org and consider supporting GoFundMe campaigns ... "places where we can make a difference that matters."
This petition can't come as a huge to surprise to Star Wars fans. According to Rotten Tomatoes, "The Last Jedi" earned an audience score of only 56 percent. That contrasts with the 88 percent audience approval rating "The Force Awakens" received and the "Rogue One" audience score of 87 percent. That's not a good sign.
People even liked the Star Wars prequels such as "The Phantom Menace" (59 percent approval), "Attack of the Clones" (57 percent approval) and "Revenge of the Sith" (65 percent approval), more than "The Last Jedi."
Though this does bode well for fans of the Star Wars prequels who have had to forever defend the likes of Jar Jar Binks. So at least there's one winner in all this.
Originally published Dec. 19, 2:57 a.m. PT.
Update, 6:15 p.m. PT: Adds petition revisions from Walsh and an updated tally of supporters.