“It’s all about the story and the talent.”
After years of uncertainty and cautious forward movement on the theatrical front, Dave Filoni has finally opened up about Lucasfilm’s evolving strategy for Star Wars movies, and it’s refreshingly focused on the basics of story and storytellers.
While Marvel is scaling back and DC is rebooting, Star Wars has been in a strange cinematic limbo ever since The Rise of Skywalker hit theaters. But now, with The Mandalorian & Grogu and Daisy Ridley’s Rey-led Jedi Order film in the pipeline, momentum is starting to shift, and Filoni, now Chief Creative Officer at Lucasfilm, is leading the charge.
At Star Wars Celebration Japan, ComicBook caught up with Filoni and when asked what the game plan is for Star Wars films moving forward, Filoni responded:
“I think it’s a combination of great stories and great storytellers, personally. I think we want people who are excited to come in, like Shawn Levy, who have a great idea and want to develop it together so we can find a way to get it to where he likes, but also have it fit in with all of the stories we’ve told.”
Filoni went on to emphasize that his job isn’t to micromanage creators but to help them tap into what makes Star Wars feel like Star Wars, while still letting their voice come through.
“For me, it’s all about the story and the talent, who are the people leading these, and how Lucasfilm can help each creative be a bit unique.
“We find ways to connect them, but I want all their stories to be unique because they’re special storytellers in their own right. So that’s our balancing act.”
As for what’s actually coming next? Celebration attendees got a sneak peek at The Mandalorian & Grogu, which serves as the franchise’s big return to theaters.
Beyond that, the Star Wars movie slate is filling out, even if it’s still missing release dates. Shawn Levy is developing Star Wars: Starfighter with Ryan Gosling set to star.
James Mangold is taking the saga way back with a film about the origins of the Jedi. Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy is helming the Rey/New Jedi Order story. Filoni’s own feature, set in the New Republic era, will eventually tie together threads from The Mandalorian, Ahsoka, and other shows.
Plus, projects from Taika Waititi and Simon Kinberg are still cooking, though details for those have not been shared.
I like that Lucasfilm isn’t trying to force a shared cinematic universe as much as it’s trying to cultivate something that feels organic. It’s all about letting unique filmmakers bring their vision to the franchise and trusting that the Force (and Filoni) will allow them to tell great stories.
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