We have no idea whether filmmaker Christopher McQuarrie (Mission: Impossible - Fallout) was ever going to get the chance to make a Star Wars movie, but now we might never know.

That's because after experiencing some of the online hostility and viciousness aimed at The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson, McQuarrie has taken himself out of the running to ever visit that fabled galaxy far, far away.

It all started innocently enough, with Johnson recommending on Twitter that anyone interested in writing and filmmaking follow McQuarrie's feed, where the latter occasionally answers questions about those crafts in an often funny, pointed, and self-deprecating style:

But when McQuarrie posted a tribute to Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling on the anniversary of Serling's death, noting Serling's clever way of inserting progressive and socially conscious messages into stories of sci-fi, fantasy, and horror, one user jumped on that and suggested that the "sjw (social justice warrior) nonsense" should be dropped from all fiction -- apparently misunderstanding both McQuarrie's tribute and the bulk of Serling's body of work.

That prompted a pointed rebuke from Johnson:

Which led to a pile-on from haters of out-of-context quotes, personal insults, and pointless arguments that McQuarrie desperately tried to get himself clicked out of. Finally, addressing Johnson, he admitted defeat:

You may despise The Last Jedi. That's your right. But what does it say that the relentless online hate directed at a director (not to mention non-white, non-male members of the cast) over a movie that was out half a year ago has prompted another talented filmmaker to declare he'd never want to get involved with the franchise?

We don't know if Christopher McQuarrie has ever been in contention or would be in the running to direct a Star Wars movie (he did write a later draft of Rogue One but denied rumors that he was brought in to help with reshoots). We don't even know if McQuarrie would be a good fit for the franchise. But at least he expressed interest -- an interest that is now dampened by just "five minutes," as he said, of what Rian Johnson (and Kelly Marie Tran, and John Boyega, and...) has gone through for six months.

How many other potential Star Wars directors will see this and decide it's not worth it? Perhaps the haters will be happy when only Uwe Boll is left to direct Star Wars - Episode XII.

(via Comicbook)