Nick Hughes

Opinion Editor

Chuck Wendig is an author of a fantastic series of Star Wars books; they include some of my favorite ones in the Disney continuity. It starts with the Aftermath Trilogy, which focused on the events that happened in the Star Wars mythos following the destruction of the second Death Star.

A good number of fans hated this book. The book introduced the first openly gay character in a Star Wars book. This, unfortunately, did not go over too well with some Star Wars fans for political reasons. Wendig has received a heavy dose of harassment because of the inclusion.

A couple years later, amidst all this harassment, Wendig announced that he’s working on a mini-series about Darth Vader, as well as  a yet-to-be announced Star Wars novel. I was itching to read more of Wendig’s work. I always loved his Aftermath trilogy and was hyped that Marvel had him working on a Vader title. Vader being my favorite character in Star Wars has a lot to do with my enthusiasm.

According to Verge Wendig was fired, ‘because of the negativity and vulgarity that [his] tweets bring… It was too much politics, too much vulgarity, too much negativity on [his] part.’”

Wendig is active politically and uses his Twitter account to push his political views, which are often progressive in nature. The specific tweet that was likely used as an example to his firing was a tweet where Wendig was adamantly opposed to the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. Stating in many tweets that it would be a mistake to confirm him. It makes me furious that Marvel would do this. Wendig said it best: the bad guys won this round.

Wendig’s firing reminds me a lot of the firing of “Guardians of the Galaxy” director, James Gunn. It leaves the same sour taste in my mouth when I think about it. I do not understand what alt-right commentators and followers gain from this. Wendig has sparred with various commentators one of which included Ben Shapiro. Marvel released a statement to EW stating that Wendig was fired for the vulgarity of his quotes and the excessive political posts. He was not fired for his stances, but because of the way he expressed them.

This sets a dangerous precedent for artists in the entertainment industry, especially those who are freelance creators like Wendig. There were never standards set for creators who worked for Disney subsidiaries as to how they could express their views online. Marvel and Lucas film fall under Disney’s jurisdiction.

Wendig seems like he’s being made as an example to other creators at Disney and other subsidiaries. Wendig is a greatly talented writer and his books are always a thrill to read, I just hope that this was just for the Marvel comics he was working on. It is not looking too good for Wendig for writing more Star Wars novels, though. I wish Chuck Wendig well, and I hope he knows that real Star Wars fans are behind him 100 percent. May the force be with you Chuck.