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Credit: LucasfilmLucasfilm has found itself at a major turning point once again, and this time, the implications could shape the future of Star Wars for decades to come.
Following intense speculation surrounding her future at the company, Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy addressed the growing rumors in 2025—while also shedding new light on what lies ahead for the galaxy far, far away. And while Kennedy insisted she wasn’t stepping away from filmmaking entirely, the studio was preparing for life after her leadership.
Despite the swirling reports late last year, Kennedy pushed back on the idea that she’d be retiring outright. Speaking to Deadline, the Lucasfilm president made it clear she had no plans to stop making movies.
“What’s happening at Lucasfilm is I have been talking for quite some time with both Bob [Iger, Disney CEO] and Alan [Bergman, Disney Entertainment] about what eventual succession might look like,” Kennedy explained. “We have an amazing bench of people here, and we have every intention of making an announcement months or a year down the road.”
She added “loud and clear” that she wasn’t retiring from filmmaking, joking that she would “die” making movies.
Kathleen Kennedy Is Stepping Down, And Here’s Who’s Replacing Her
While Kennedy may remain active as a producer, Lucasfilm has now confirmed that she will step down as President, ending one of the most influential—and controversial—eras in Star Wars history.
Lucasfilm leadership will transition to a dual structure, with Dave Filoni and Lynwen Brennan officially taking over as co-heads of the studio, with the former overseeing creative direction and the latter heading up the business side of things. The move mirrors Disney’s recent strategy of pairing creative leadership with long-term brand stewardship and signals a decisive shift toward creator-led storytelling.
Star Wars Movies: A Franchise in Flux
Despite multiple announced projects, Lucasfilm has struggled to bring Star Wars back to theaters. At Star Wars Celebration 2023, Kennedy unveiled three new films, but development delays quickly reshuffled priorities.
Jon Favreau’s The Mandalorian and Grogu—set for release in 2026—has surged ahead as the next theatrical installment. Meanwhile, James Mangold’s “Dawn of the Jedi” (“on hold”), Dave Filoni’s Mando-Verse crossover (seemingly scrapped), and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s Rey Skywalker project (reportedly suspended) apparently remain in various stages of development.
Following The Mandalorian and Grogu, Lucasfilm’s first foray into post-sequel-trilogy life will be in May 2027. Shawn Levy’s standalone movie, Star Wars: Starfighter (2027), will be led by Academy Award nominee Ryan Gosling and is expected to follow a Jedi-Padawan storyline.
Simon Kinberg’s New Star Wars Trilogy Takes Center Stage
In 2024, Lucasfilm confirmed that Simon Kinberg had been tapped to develop an entirely new Star Wars trilogy, signaling a dramatic shift in focus—and momentum. “We’re absolutely rolling fast and furiously,” Kennedy revealed. “That has gone exceptionally well, and he’s literally going to script as we speak. We’ll see something probably around June.”
Kinberg previously collaborated with Lucasfilm on animated projects before becoming heavily involved with X-Men. Now, he’s back—and positioned to define the franchise’s next cinematic era. “This is the next iteration, the new saga that moves us into the future,” Kennedy said, confirming the trilogy will move beyond the Skywalker Saga entirely.
Like Levy’s film, Kinberg’s trilogy will also take place after Star Wars: Episode IX–The Rise of Skywalker (2019), roughly five or six years later. “That’s also in the future. It’s all post-[the first] nine,” Kennedy explained. “It’s all pretty much new characters. We may bring some of the characters back from the sequel saga, but pretty much new characters.”
More recently, Kennedy confirmed that Kinberg is still at work on the screenplays.
“He’s working right now. He wrote something that we read in August, and it was very good, but not there.” Kennedy said in her exit interview with Deadline. “We’ve pretty much upended the story, and then spent a great deal of time on the treatment, which he finished literally about four weeks ago. And it’s a very detailed treatment, like 70 pages. And so he is expected to give us something in March.”
The biggest question is: if Kinberg is creating Episodes X–XII and Daisy Ridley’s “New Jedi Order” movie is also set after The Rise of Skywalker, how do the trilogy and the solo movie work together? Well, chances are Obaid-Chinoy’s Rey film will be absorbed into Kinberg’s effort. And new reports about casting have continued to solidify that notion.
“According to Daniel Richtman, Ridley’s Rey Skywalker will have a major role in the planned trilogy,” Comic Book Movie writes. “However, the focus will be on new leads, indicating that while Rey is going to be placed front and centre, it won’t be as the story’s main protagonist.”
In addition to this report, during Kathleen Kennedy’s exit interview, the Rey “New Jedi Order” movie was not mentioned once, but the plethora of other projects currently in motion were. Not only that, but the December 2026 slot held for a Star Wars film (thought to be the Rey movie) was replaced by Disney with 20th Century Studios’ Ice Age 6 (2026).
An interesting case when the pieces are all added together.
A New Direction for the Galaxy Far, Far Away
Under Kennedy’s leadership, Star Wars reached unprecedented box-office heights with Star Wars: Episode VII — The Force Awakens (2015), but the sequel trilogy’s creative divisions ultimately fractured the fanbase. Since then, Lucasfilm has leaned heavily into Disney+, finding success with The Mandalorian and Andor, while other projects struggled to resonate.
Now, with new leadership on the horizon and Simon Kinberg’s trilogy pushing forward, Lucasfilm appears ready to finally chart a bold new course. Whether fans are ready to follow is another question entirely.
What do you think about the Rey movie potentially being cancelled? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments below.