Potentially big news for “Star Wars” fans today as Lucasfilm is developing not just one new movie in the franchise, but an entire trilogy. According to Deadline, mega-producer and writer/director Simon Kinberg has signed a deal with Lucasfilm to develop a new trilogy of films set in a galaxy far, far away.
Plot details remain under wraps, but the outlet states that this could potentially be another sequel trilogy that would pick up after the events of 2019’s “Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker.” The outlet also cautions that the notion of this being “Episode X,” so to speak, has been disputed. It’s also worth noting that Lucasfilm is already developing a new movie with Daisy Ridley returning as Rey that will focus on her training a new Jedi Order. Still, while it’s hard to say precisely what is going on here, it’s worth looking at Kinberg’s credits as a filmmaker now that this is happening.
Kinberg, as a producer, has a huge list of impressive credits, including “Deadpool & Wolverine,” “The Martian,” “Logan,” and most importantly “Star Wars Rebels,” which is arguably one of the best “Star Wars” projects ever made. However, as a writer and director, things get much more spotty. He co-wrote “X-Men: The Last Stand,” 2015’s disastrous “Fantastic Four,” and “Dark Phoenix,” the latter of which he also directed. His name is firmly behind some of the most widely disliked superhero movies ever made. That’s hard to ignore at a time like this.
Can Simon Kinberg bring his best sensibilities to Star Wars?
At the same time, as a producer, Kinberg has often seemingly been an asset to many of the projects he’s been associated with. The good news is that Dave Filoni, the maestro behind “The Clone Wars” and “Rebels,” is now the chief creative officer at Lucasfilm. Filoni has worked closely with Kinberg in the past and can perhaps help lend him a guiding hand when it comes to this new “Star Wars” trilogy, whatever shape it ultimately takes. That is, if it ever takes shape at all, which is something else we must question.
For years now, Lucasfilm has been developing various “Star Wars” movies that never get made. “The Last Jedi” director Rian Johnson was developing a trilogy that never came to fruition. David Benioff and D.B. Weiss of “Game of Thrones” fame were developing a trilogy that was later abandoned. Patty Jenkins (“Wonder Woman”) was developing “Rogue Squadron” as a film that was later put on the backburner. Even Taika Waititi (“Thor: Ragnarok”) has a “Star Wars” film in development that we haven’t heard anything about in a long time. These are just a few examples, of which there are many more.
That’s to say, at this point, just because a “Star Wars” project enters development doesn’t mean it’s absolutely happening. What we know for sure is that Jon Favreau, the man behind “The Mandalorian,” will bring the franchise back to the big screen in 2026 with “The Mandalorian and Grogu.” Filoni also has a film in development that will tie together the events of “The Mandalorian” and its spinoffs. Meanwhile, James Mangold is developing a film that is said to focus on the dawn of the Jedi. How do all of those mesh with Kinberg’s trilogy? We’ll have to wait and see how this all shakes out.
“The Mandalorian and Grogu” is set to hit theaters on May 22, 2026.
This post was originally published on here
