There are beloved movie franchises, and then there’s Star Wars. Generations of moviegoers grew up with George Lucas’ galaxy far, far away, resulting in a massive fanbase. And while the property continues to expand thanks to live-action shows on Disney+, there haven’t been any movies start production since 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker. While a number of projects were announced and scrapped, it’s currently unclear when it’ll finally return to theaters. A Disney exec recently spoke to this, saying “we are being very careful.”
A ton of Star Wars content has arrived since Disney acquired Lucasfilm, including the sequel trilogy, theme park lands, and shows like The Mandalorian. But fans have been curious about when a new movie might finally start active development, especially since so many potential projects have been announced over the years. Disney boss Bob Iger recently spoke at an investor conference (via THR), where he addressed the recent lack of movie content. He name dropped the standalone movies that previously arrived, saying:
Rogue One did quite well, Solo was a little disappointing to us. It gave us pause just to think maybe the cadence was a little too aggressive. And so we decided to pull back a bit. We still are developing Star Wars films. We’re going to make sure that when we make one, that it’s the right one, so we are being very careful there.
There you have it. It looks like the lack of major development on a Star Wars movie has been a purposeful choice by the studio, who wants to be purposeful with the massive budgets required to transport audiences to George Lucas’ colorful world. And given that Solo: A Star Wars Story was the franchise’s first box office disappointment, the stakes certainly feel high.
Bob Iger’s comments offer a rare peek behind the curtain regarding how Disney is approaching the Star Wars franchise as a whole. While the studio continues to lean heavily on the beloved IP, it’s not just throwing money away on potential movies. Perhaps it's for this reason that Patty Jenkins’ Rogue Squadron movie was put on indefinite hold before being scrapped altogether. We’ll just have to wait and see when a new movie installment finally begins production.
As previously mentioned, fans were treated to some exciting Star Wars movie announcements, the majority of which didn’t play out. While it looked like Rogue Squadron would be the first post-Skywalker Saga movie, that movie ended up being scrapped. Right now there are still two well-known directors attached to work on their own installment of the space opera, namely Rian Johnson and Taika Waititi. But it’s unclear if/when real development and eventual filming will occur.
While fans wait for a new Star Wars movie, they can tune in to Season 2 of The Mandalorian and watch all Star Wars movies in order for an affordable Disney Plus price. Also, in the meantime, check out the 2023 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.
