Ever since “The Rise of Skywalker,” the culminating feature film from director J.J. Abrams, imploded in spectacular fashion, “Star Wars” movie development has been stuck in the bogs of Dagobah. Whereas Disney+ boasts a robust fleet of live-action “Star Wars” series — three streamed in 2022 alone — not a single “Star Wars” movie has received a greenlight, let alone gone into production. The earliest a film is scheduled to debut in theaters is December 2025, six years after “The Rise of Skywalker.”
It’s not for want of trying. In December 2020, Lucasfilm chief Kathleen Kennedy announced that “Wonder Woman” helmer Patty Jenkins would direct the next “Star Wars” movie, the one-off adventure “Rogue Squadron.” But in September 2022, Disney pulled the title from its scheduled December 2023 release, and sources with knowledge of the production say it is no longer in active development at the studio.
Meanwhile, Variety is reporting that a possible “Star Wars” feature produced by Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige is also no longer in active development at Lucasfilm.
Sources also say “Thor: Love and Thunder” filmmaker Taika Waititi continues to work on his possible “Star Wars” feature, and he would most likely have a part in it as well, similar in prominence to his standout role as an imaginary Adolf Hitler in his Oscar-winning 2019 feature “Jojo Rabbit.” And although Lucasfilm has yet to officially confirm it, sources say the studio is committed to a “Star Wars” movie from director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, a two-time Oscar-winning documentarian (“Saving Face,” “A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness”), who made her live-action narrative debut with two episodes of 2022’s “Ms. Marvel” for Disney+.
Whether one of those films, or some as-yet-unannounced project, lands at the front of the line has been a fiercely guarded secret at Lucasfilm, but sources say the studio will begin to unveil its plans for the future of “Star Wars” cinema at the Star Wars Celebration convention in London the weekend of April 7.
Meanwhile, the MCU has yet to find its actors for the Fantastic Four reboot, but new rumors indicate that Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige is very active in the casting process. Director Matt Shakman recently addressed casting of the “First Family of Marvel” movie, noting that everything fans see online is pure speculation as he and Marvel Studios “have nothing to announce right now.”
Feige’s rumored approach in the casting department for Fantastic Four seems to make sense given the four actors will likely serve as pillars of the MCU moving forward.
The new rumors just may mean that the official announcement for the MCU’s Fantastic Four actors would arrive in the latter half of the year, potentially during this year’s San Diego Comic-Con in July or Disney’s D23 event. Fantastic Four is set to hit theaters on February 14, 2025.
via The Direct
