The future of Star Wars looks to be in good hands on the small screen with The Mandalorian generating some hugely positive buzz, Ewan McGregor reprising the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi to the massive delight of the fans, and the still-untitled Cassian Andor spinoff recently hiring the Bourne franchise’s Tony Gilroy to write and direct multiple episodes. However, things aren’t looking too rosy for the sci-fi franchise on the big screen.
Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss recently either quit or were fired from their in-development trilogy, while recent rumors have also indicated that the second trilogy, that was set to be spearheaded by The Last Jedi’s Rian Johnson, is also looking increasingly unlikely to happen. With the upcoming Rise of Skywalker set to bring the main series to a close after 42 years, the cinematic future of Star Wars is at a crossroads, with no concrete plans mapped out despite Disney and Lucasfilm staking out multiple release dates up until 2026.
A report by Variety offers more details on the departures of Benioff and Weiss, and sheds light on the creative differences between the filmmaking duo and the studio that ultimately led to their departure.
“The departure of the two likely sends the studio back to the drawing board with the future of the series more uncertain than it has been since Disney closed its $4bn deal for Lucasfilm in 2012. The Star Wars period the pair was interested in exploring was how the Jedi came to exist. However, Lucasfilm executives and the creators begin to see their visions for the films diverge during meetings last summer. News that the pair had signed a massive $250m production deal with Netflix was a signal to many that they were eager to explore other opportunities.”
With no backup plan in place, what comes next for Star Wars is arguably as unclear as it’s been since the end of George Lucas’ Prequel Trilogy. While there’s little doubt that Disney and Lucasfilm will continue to try and milk the franchise for every last penny, the studio are likely scrambling behind the scenes to come up with new ideas.
