10 Things You Do Not Know About Kathleen Kennedy
Kathleen Kennedy is an absolute titan in Hollywood. She is one of the biggest producers who had some incredible movies under her belt. For anyone who may not be as familiar with her, she is most notably the President of Lucasfilm, and has been a part of every Star Wars project that has come out after Disney’s purchase of the company. If you are still unfamiliar with her, I guarantee you are familiar with her work. Despite fans' rather mixed feelings towards her, she is the woman behind Star Wars and countless other films. Whether you love her or hate her, there is still a lot you may not have known about Kathleen Kennedy.
10. She Only Recently Started At Lucasfilm
She only officially joined Lucasfilm in 2012. This frankly surprised me. The number of films she has been involved in with Lucasfilm and the way George Lucas spoke about her gave me the impression that she had been with the company for much longer than that. I am sure she had worked on projects without actually being a permanent member of the company.
9. She Is Not Just The President Of Lucasfilm
Kathleen Kennedy is not just in charge of projects at Lucasfilm. As President, she oversees all three branches of Lucasfilm. This includes Lucasfilm (obviously), Industrial Light & Magic, and Skywalker Sound. Not only is she involved with the main Lucasfilm projects when they go through the other two branches, she also has some degree of involvement with any other film that needs to utilize ILM or Skywalker Sound for their respective utilities.
8. She Is Involved With Everything Star Wars
A big portion of fans thinks that Kathleen Kennedy only had her hands on the main Star Wars films like the sequel trilogy, but this was not the case. As a matter of fact, Kathleen Kennedy was involved with every single Star Wars project that has been released after she was made President. This includes spin-off movies (Rogue One, Solo), shows (The Mandalorian), books, comics, and even video games.
7. She Was Even Involved With The Parks
When I said everything Star Wars, I meant it. She had her hands on the toys and other merchandise, which has always been a big point for Star Wars. She was also involved with the creation of the Star Wars-themed Disney park Galaxy’s Edge. While I am sure her role was largely one of advisory and management, it is great to know that she was involved with the park to some degree, which few producers have ever been able to do in the past.
6. She Holds A Record
I suppose she does not hold the record personally, but the film she helped make does. Star Wars: The Force Awakens holds the record for highest domestic box office earnings of all time. That is very impressive since the film came out five and a half years ago, and big films like Avengers: Endgame came out in 2019. Other Star Wars films would go on to earn high box office numbers. Rogue One was the number one grossing film of 2016.
5. She Had Another Production Company
Lucasfilm was not Kennedy’s first time running a company. She actually founded her own production company with her husband Frank Marshall in 1991 called The Kennedy/Marshall Company. Together they produced some really great films through their company. Some of which, I will talk about in the next point on the list. She stepped down in 2012 to head Lucasfilm, but her husband is still leading The Kennedy/Marshall Company.
4. She Produced Studio Ghibli Films
Some of the notable movies that The Kennedy/Marshall Company produced were Studio Ghibli's From Up on Poppy Hill and Ponyo. Anything Studio Ghibli makes is cinematic and animation gold. For Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall, and their company to be part of these movies to any degree is a high honor in my eyes. Not to mention, it must have been really fun to help produce such masterpieces.
3. She Worked At Amblin
In addition to leading Lucasfilm and her own production company, Kathleen Kennedy had also worked for Amblin, the production company started by Steven Spielberg. While there, she helped produce some of the greatest films of all time, which we will discuss in the next section.
2. She Has Been Involved With Some Amazing Films And Directors
She was a producer on two Studio Ghibli movies, and of course, she is a part of the Star Wars universe. However, the full list of movies she has been involved with is absolutely staggering. She was a producer on E.T. and Jurassic Park. She produced all three Back to the Future movies. She had also been an executive producer on The Goonies, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Schindler’s List, and so many more. She also worked with talented directors such as Steven Spielberg, David Fincher, Robert Zemeckis, M. Night Shyamalan, and Richard Donner.
1. Her First Job Was With Steven Spielberg
While working on the film 1941, Kennedy had a chance meeting with Steven Spielberg. Deeply impressed by her organizational skills, Spielberg made her his assistant. She essentially worked her way up the ladder with Spielberg, gaining more and more responsibilities and roles along the way. She eventually got a credit on Raiders of the Lost Ark as an associate to Spielberg, and she would later get a credit on Poltergeist as an associate producer.
Source: The Star Wars Show, The Kennedy/Marshall Company Official Website, Lucasfilm Official Website, Wikipedia