Lucasfilm has confirmed that Rian Johnson's Star Wars trilogy is on hold for the time being as the filmmaker is "unbelievably busy" with other projects.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy provided an update on the planned Star Wars trilogy from Rian Johnson, which was first announced back in 2017. Johnson was set to write and direct the first of the three films but there have been very few updates in the years since because he has apparently been sidetracked by other projects.
"Rian has been unbelievably busy with Knives Out and the deal that he made at Netflix for multiple movies," Kennedy confirmed, referencing his commitments with Netflix. The streaming company shelled out a whopping $450 million last year to purchase the rights to two Knives Out sequels, with writer-director Rian Johnson returning for both of those films.
This deal has reportedly put Johnson's Star Wars trilogy on the back burner for now, meaning there are no dates or timelines for when the first film will be released and it doesn't currently feature on Lucasfilm's immediate road map for the future. Kennedy even hinted that the trilogy format might be on the way out, in favour of "much more persistent storytelling."
Johnson's planned Star Wars trilogy may be the exception. The Last Jedi director had started developing the new film series before his schedule ramped up, telling IGN in 2018 that he was at "the very beginning of figuring out what this new thing" was going to be. He later confirmed that he would be moving "beyond the legacy characters" to find an all-new direction.
While Johnson's film trilogy is paused, it looks likely that Taika Waititi's Star Wars movie will be the first out of the gate. Rogue Squadron from Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins is said to be "further off," having been indefinitely delayed last year, and Kevin Feige's movie is up in the air as Kennedy noted "there isn't anything specifically" down for that right now.
Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.
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In an interview with Vanity Fair, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy provided an update on the planned Star Wars trilogy from Rian Johnson, which was first announced back in 2017. Johnson was set to write and direct the first of the three films but there have been very few updates in the years since because he has apparently been sidetracked by other projects.
"Rian has been unbelievably busy with Knives Out and the deal that he made at Netflix for multiple movies," Kennedy confirmed, referencing his commitments with Netflix. The streaming company shelled out a whopping $450 million last year to purchase the rights to two Knives Out sequels, with writer-director Rian Johnson returning for both of those films.
This deal has reportedly put Johnson's Star Wars trilogy on the back burner for now, meaning there are no dates or timelines for when the first film will be released and it doesn't currently feature on Lucasfilm's immediate road map for the future. Kennedy even hinted that the trilogy format might be on the way out, in favour of "much more persistent storytelling."
Johnson's planned Star Wars trilogy may be the exception. The Last Jedi director had started developing the new film series before his schedule ramped up, telling IGN in 2018 that he was at "the very beginning of figuring out what this new thing" was going to be. He later confirmed that he would be moving "beyond the legacy characters" to find an all-new direction.
While Johnson's film trilogy is paused, it looks likely that Taika Waititi's Star Wars movie will be the first out of the gate. Rogue Squadron from Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins is said to be "further off," having been indefinitely delayed last year, and Kevin Feige's movie is up in the air as Kennedy noted "there isn't anything specifically" down for that right now.
Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.
Continue reading...