EEAAO Oscar winners defend directing episode of Star Wars series: Needed 'to keep our healthcare'

Even Oscar winners worry about healthcare!

Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, the two filmmakers behind Everything Everywhere All at Once, addressed a report that they were now working on a Star Wars series for Disney+. Kwan clarified they only directed one episode of Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, the upcoming show headlined by Jude Law. He further joked that healthcare played a part in the decision.

The site One Take News was the first to report the Daniels involvement in Skeleton Crew, which is being spearheaded by Spider-Man: No Way Home filmmaker Jon Watts. The Hollywood Reporter followed with a similar report, which Kwan addressed in a statement shared to his Instagram Story on Monday.

"Lol, all of the people @ing us about getting sucked up by the 'corporate machine' can chill. These headlines are always misleading," Kwan wrote.

Many movie lovers and those within the Hollywood industry have criticized the pattern of big studios tapping the next big indie filmmakers to make franchised superhero or genre projects. (Watts himself was tapped to helm Marvel and Sony's Spider-Man movies after the success of his films Cop Car and Clown.)

"Don't worry. We aren't working on a whole series, we guest directed one episode," Kwan continued. "Jon Watts approached us to do an episode a while ago (before EEAAO even came out). We love Jon, love Star Wars, love learning new tech, we love meeting new cast and crew, and we needed the days to keep our healthcare (!!!) so it was an easy yes."

Kwan also confirmed he and Scheinert shot the episode last year. "I'm excited for you all to see it," he added. "Our next film will be an original Daniels project so you can stop worrying (and stop bothering me about it)."

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew is a show about "a group of kids, about 10 years old, from a tiny little planet who accidentally get lost in the Star Wars galaxy," Watts explained during last year's Star Wars Celebration. "And it's the story of their journey trying to find their way home."

"It's as much of a kids' show as Clone Wars," producer Dave Filoni added at the time. "And I'm like, we cut people's heads off in Clone Wars, so I'm not sure that's the best measure."

Kwan and Scheinert made out like bandits at the Oscars this year, winning Best Original Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Picture for Everything Everywhere All at Once.

"We want to dedicate this to the mommies, all the mommies of the world, to our moms, specifically my mom and dad, Ken and Becky, thank you for not squashing my creativity when I was making really disturbing horror films or really perverted comedy films or dressing in drag as a kid, which is a threat to nobody," Scheinert said during their acceptance speech for Best Director.

"There is greatness in every single person, it doesn't matter who they are," Kwan said. "You have a genius waiting to erupt, you just need to find the right people to unlock that. Thank you to everyone who has unlocked my genius."

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