With the Skywalker Saga now having come to a close with the release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, fans now turn their attention toward an uncertain future. The Star Wars franchise will certainly continue, but exactly how that will happen, especially on the big screen, is very much unclear.
However, a new rumor may have indicated just where the next Star Wars film franchise is planning to go, the High Republic. Making Star Wars, is reporting that unnamed sources are telling the site that the next set of Star Wars movies is going to be set 400 years before the Skywalker Saga, when the Galactic Republic, which fell in the prequels, was at the height of its power.
It was during this period that Darth Bane reorganized the Sith, instituting the "rule of two." It's also mentioned that Yoda would be a Jedi Knight during this period, and not the elderly master that we are familiar with. While these characters are mentioned in the report, it's not specifically confirmed that either would actually feature in the films. There's no details on any specific plot lines or characters that will be involved, simply the era in which the films would be set
According to the report, the next batch of films won't be a single trilogy, but rather a collection of films which, while largely standalone, would have elements which connect them, and will all take place during approximately this same time period.
If true, these are the films that Game of Thrones showrunners, D.B. Weiss and David Benioff were working on before they ended their deal with Lucasfilm. While nobody has been officially announced to take over the project, it seems that the idea that they started will move forward without them.
As a place to anchor new Star Wars movies, it's certainly not a bad idea. We've seen the Galactic Republic's fall and the rebellion against the Empire that replaced it. However, we've never really seen the Republic itself or gotten a feel for how things were before Palpatine put his plan into motion. It gives whatever filmmakers get involved a lot of things to potentially work with.
The Jedi will be in a much stronger position, so a slew of new Jedi characters can be created. In general, with this new series of films taking place so far before the films we know, there will be almost complete freedom for creating new characters to tell whatever kind of story people want. While the movies could certainly be Jedi focused, they could also focus anywhere else.
Certainly, we'll have to wait and see what happens. At this point, while there may be a plan for where to set the next movie(s), there's nobody confirmed to be writing or directing them, and if somebody comes along willing to take the helm that has a different idea for what to do with Star Wars perhaps things will change.
The next Star Wars movie, whatever it is, is set for release on December 16, 2022.
