Next month, movie goers around the world will see, for the first time, a Star Wars film without the involvement of George Lucas. With the entirety of the franchise and his Lucasfilm empire now under the watch of Disney, the prolific director took some time to reflect on his decision to walk away from the universe he built.

In a brief chat with Vanity Fair, the filmmaker explained why he's done with Star Wars.

"You go to make a movie and all you do is get criticized. And, people try to make decisions about what you're going to do before you do it." Says Lucas. "You know, it's not much fun. And you can't experiment, you can't do anything. You have to do it a certain way. I don't like that, I never did. I started out in experimental films and I want to go back to experimental films."

Lucas has received his fair share of criticism over the years over his handling of Star Wars. From meddling with the original trilogy in the special editions to the numerous complaints hurled against him for the prequel trilogy, it's easy to see why he would want to relinquish the reins to a new generation of filmmakers.

What's next for Lucas as a filmmaker remains unclear. His last foray was 2012's WWII fighter pilot film Red Tails, which he directed reshoots for. Will the 71-year old get back into the director's chair for another film? We'll have to wait and see.

For now all eyes will be on JJ Abrams and the rest of Lucasfilm brain trust to see if they can deliver a film worthy of Lucas' legacy. Star Wars: The Force Awakens opens on December 18. Spin-off film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story comes next in December 2016.