Credit: LucasfilmIt’s one thing to get pink-slipped face-to-face, but it’s another to learn of your shocking dismissal from one of Disney’s most popular franchises thanks to viral news headlines on Twitter—something Haunted Mansion (2023) director Justin Simien recently had the unfortunate luck of experiencing firsthand.
What’s Going on at Disney? Strikes, Box Office Flops, and BTS Drama
Amid a particularly tumultuous time for the Walt Disney Company and its adversaries, it seems to be a free-for-all behind the scenes at Lucasfilm, the studio responsible for beloved classics, including the Indiana Jones and Star Wars franchises.
2023 hasn’t been kind to Lucasfilm, with the historic WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes bringing several of their productions to a standstill, such as Season 2 of the smash hit Disney+ Andor series. This unfortunate luck also comes hot on the heels of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny‘s (2023) box office bomb and rumors of its controversial president, Kathleen Kennedy, exiting her position after a long string of less-than-impressive Star Wars TV shows.
Related: Disney Abandons ‘Star Wars’ — Willing to Let Franchise Die, Report Says
Needless to say, Lucasfilm needs a miracle, and soon. Its parent company isn’t faring too well either, with Rob Marshall’s live-action The Little Mermaid (2023) reboot failing to make a splash at the global box office, as well as unremarkable Marvel Studios endeavors like January’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) and the Disney+ Secret Invasion show.
‘Lando’ Series Timeline
But if one franchise could rescue the dying studio, it’s probably Star Wars, which is responsible for three of the top-grossing movies of all time. To remedy its flailing reputation, Lucasfilm, which hasn’t premiered a new Star Wars movie since 2019, announced back in April that not one but three new features are in the works at the galaxy far, far away.
Daisy Ridley will reprise her role as Rey for a new film directed by Oscar-winner Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, while James Mangold will make his franchise debut with a mysterious story set in the yet-unexplored pre-Old Republic era. Meanwhile, longtime Star Wars animation creator and Ahsoka showrunner Dave Filoni will helm the highly-anticipated “Mando-Verse” crossover event.
Related: Donald Glover ‘Star Wars’ Series Could be Part of Disney Cutbacks
In addition to the announcements made during Star Wars Celebration Europe 2023, we also got updates on Disney+ series, including Ahsoka, The Acolyte, Skeleton Crew, and The Bad Batch. But one project thought to be in development was noticeably absent from the studio’s lineup: Lando.
During Disney Investor Day 2020, Lucasfilm revealed that Haunted Mansion director Justin Simien would serve as showrunner on a Lando TV show starring Solo: A Star Wars Story‘s (2018) Donald Glover. The miniseries would follow the iconic legacy character Lando Calrissian (originated by Billy Dee Williams), presumably throughout his early life prior to meeting the infamous smuggler Han Solo (Harrison Ford and Alden Caleb Ehrenreich).
But news on the eagerly-awaited project was virtually nonexistent, with Lucasfilm neglecting to comment on its development for years. Justin Simien spoke openly about not having an update on the series since its initial announcement, even telling The Hollywood Reporter in a recent interview that he was still attached to the project but was repetedly told by Disney that they “needed to put a pin in it.” Other than that, updates on Lando were radio silent—until now.
Justin Simien Didn’t Know He’d Been Replaced for ‘Lando’
Last Thursday, Star Wars fans were left dumbfounded after reports of Justin Simien’s exit from Lando made the rounds across social media, confirming that Donald Glover himself and his younger brother, Stephen Glover, would be taking over writing duties for the upcoming show. The Glover siblings have been longtime collaborators on the FX comedy-drama Atlanta, but this will mark Stephen’s franchise debut.
Obviously, this new information came as a shock to those interested in Lando and its progress. But perhaps no one was as surprised as Justin Simien, who took to Instagram shortly after news broke to reveal that he had learned of his replacement via social media.
Coming hot off the Haunted Mansion press junket, it appears Simien wasn’t looped in on whatever discussions were taking place behind closed doors at Lucasfilm HQ. Shortly after the bombshell Lando news broke Thursday, Simien shared an Instagram story with the caption, “This is me finding out rn,” accompanied by a headline.
In an additional Instagram story, Simien continued, writing, “Donald is a national treasure. Glad he and Stephen get to carry the character forward their way. Can’t wait to see. Rooting for everybody Black.” Read Simien’s complete statement (via @webseriesusa) below:
Justin Simien Wishes Donald Glover Success on 'Lando' Series
#film #ONStorm #love #cinema #usa #uk #actor #films #movies
👉For Detail https://t.co/klcp86glUi🌹 pic.twitter.com/U8KrVzYvPt— martha bjones (@webseriesusa) July 28, 2023
Why Was Justin Simien Cut from ‘Lando?’
Although he made sure to show his support for Donald and Stephen Glover taking over writing duties and penning the series, Simien seemed understandably taken aback by the news. While the writer-director has yet to share any specific reasons as to why the Lando series is moving on without him, many have speculated that his sudden departure from the series is due to his recent criticisms of Disney and its controversial CEO, Bob Iger, who’s been under fire after calling WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikers’ demands “not realistic” on national television.
Sadly enough, Simien might’ve predicted his demise at Disney when hinting that he was “too Black” and “too queer” for the studio, on top of calling Iger’s comments “Really unfortunate.” The troubling reality is that all of these things could’ve culminated in Disney giving Simien the axe, which wouldn’t be out of line with previous accusations made against the company by other creatives.
But there might be a different reason why Lucasfilm and Simien went their separate ways. According to a report from Jeff Sneider, which he discussed during an episode of The Hot Mic podcast, the Dear White People creator has been cut from the Lando series since last summer in favor of focusing his efforts on Haunted Mansion. The report also implies that the Glover brothers and Disney chose to remain tight-lipped about Simien’s firing, despite signing onto the project well before the WGA strike and not working on the script since.
Supposedly, Simien’s recent statement was made in an effort to toe the company line, with the director not wanting to make explosive headlines before the release of his new Disney movie earlier this month. There are also rumors that Haunted Mansion wasn’t a smooth production, with Simien allegedly not being well-versed in productions that rely heavily on CGI—something that’s crucial to any good Star Wars show.
While this is unquestionably an appalling way for Lucasfilm to handle this situation, we can only hope that giving Donald and Stephen Glover the reins for Lando will be worth it. It’ll be interesting to hear from Simien himself somewhere down the line and if he’ll speak more openly about his sudden exit from the Star Wars spinoff after Haunted Mansion finishes out its theatrical run.
What do you think of Justin Simien not discovering he’d been kicked off Lando until seeing headlines on social media? Do you think Disney and Lucasfilm could’ve handled the situation better? Let us know in the comments below.