Neoliberal Aesthetics of Resistance in the Disney Star Wars Films

This book explores how Disney’s Star Wars films leverage popular discussions about the representations of marginalized communities in U.S. media to gain political and economic profit. Abigail Reed argues that Disney uses these narratives to support a model of resistance that benefits their position as a global media conglomerate.

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From 2015 to 2019, the Walt Disney Corporation has produced five theatrical films in the Star Wars galaxy. These films have been met with mixed reactions from audiences and critics alike and sparked seemingly endless public debate about representations of people of color, women, and queer people in 21st century popular film. This book explores the evolving discourse surrounding Disney’s Star Wars films from a political economic perspective and through a lens focusing on the corporate representation of marginalized communities with an aim to critique neoliberal ethics of resistance against fascist regimes. Through exploring the characters of Saw Gerrera, Finn, Poe Dameron, and L3-37, Abigail Reed argues that Disney’s utilization of diverse identities within the franchise is ultimately regressive. Rather than engaging with marginalized communities’ histories or futures, Reed posits, Disney uses these narratives to serve its private interests as an American global media conglomerate and undermine historically effective models of rebellion against imperialism in favor of a model of governance that centers Whiteness and the interests of the Global North.