The lore may have expanded to a level that not even George Lucas could have imagined when he first started piecing together the mythology well over 40 years ago, but at the very heart of the matter, Star Wars has always been a simple tale of good versus evil. It may’ve become overcomplicated by Midi-chlorians and the waters muddied by retcons and widespread disagreements over what constitutes official canon, but it still boils down to the heroes defeating the villains and saving the day.
That’s what a galaxy far, far away has revolved around for decades now, but insider Daniel Richtman claims that Lucasfilm could be set to try something completely different moving forward. According to the tipster, the studio wants to explore the Dark Side in greater depth, and to do that, they’ll position some nefarious characters at the forefront of several upcoming movies and TV shows.
This is in no way a confirmation that Star Wars is completely pivoting from the approach that’s served it so well for four decades, but shades of grey have never really been a big part of the mythology before. The Mandalorian, in particular, symbolizes how straightforward the stories have always been, and while Boba Fett may have been introduced as a villain, his cult status quickly saw him take on a life of his own.
These rumored villain-centric projects presumably haven’t been announced yet, because none of the major Disney Investor Day reveals concerning Star Wars hinted at bad guys being positioned at the forefront. Darth Vader is back in Obi-Wan Kenobi but he’s obviously not the lead, The Acolyte will incorporate the Dark Side but it won’t be the driving force of the narrative, and the rest of the Disney Plus shows all have characters firmly established as heroes in the most prominent roles.
As such, we’ll just have to wait and see what the future holds. But if Richtman is to be believed, we’ll soon be seeing a lot more villain-led films and TV series.
