Star Wars may finally return to theaters next year following 2019’s polarizing finale to the Skywalker Trilogy, Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker. Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy revealed the news in a recent interview with Total Film, confirming that a new Star Wars film is aiming for release in cinemas in late 2023. Directing the film will be Taika Waititi, the director behind Marvel Studios’ most recent Thor films (i.e., Ragnarok and Love and Thunder) and JoJo Rabbit, a comedy-drama centered on a Hitler Youth member that earned the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay in 2020. Kennedy did not share any new details regarding Waiti’s project but noted that Lucasfilm has been working hard on future movies with “people who care so deeply about what the next iteration of Star Wars is.” The studio is also seeking to create “a whole new saga.”
Total Film: Star Wars Celebration has led to some very exciting new, but I would say there was a curious lack of talk about the movies. There were reports that the next movie will now be Taika Waititi’s Star Wars film. Is that correct?.
Kathleen Kennedy: That’s correct.
Is that aiming for 2023?
Yeah. Well, not 2023, but late 2023.
The December 2023 release date?
We haven’t locked anything in.
The future of the movies is still in movement?
Of course, they’ve been in movement all along. As we leave the saga, we have all this great, exciting work happening on the television side that informs so much about where we’re going. We want to be very intentional about that. And we have great talent that we’re working with – people who care so deeply about what the next iteration of Star Wars is and about getting people back into movie theatres, so we can really come out with a bang. That’s important to us.
Do you think that is a hesitancy perhaps in exploring past the Skywalker Saga?
No hesitancy.
So that’s very much on your mind?
Oh, yes. We need to create a whole new saga. That takes a lot. There’s a lot of conversation around that.
Source: Total Film