Kathleen Kennedy: Star Wars to Map Out Next Decade of Storytelling with Rian Johnson and Game of Thrones Writers

Kathleen Kennedy: Star Wars to Map Out Next Decade of Storytelling with Rian Johnson and Game of Thrones Writers

Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy revealed that following Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the Star Wars team including Rian Johnson and Game of Thrones writers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss will map out the next decade of Star Wars stories.

Kennedy spoke with EW, where she confirmed Bob Iger’s recent comments that Star Wars movie will take a hiatus following Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, “We’re going to take a hiatus for a couple of years.”

She would go on to state that during the hiatus they plan to map out the next decade of storytelling, “And we’re taking the time to really look at where this is going from the standpoint of a saga.” She adds, “We’re not just looking at what the next three movies might be, or talking about this in terms of a trilogy. We’re looking at: What is the next decade of storytelling?”

Kennedy would go on to confirm that Star Wars: The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson and Game of Thrones writers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss will be central to this process, “As they finish Game of Thrones, they’re going to segue into Star Wars. They’re working very closely with Rian.”

Kennedy and Star Wars have been roundly criticized for what appears to be a lack of planning for the current Star Wars trilogy. In fact, Daisy Ridley, who plays Rey, confirmed the lack of continuity between The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi in a French interview. She stated:

“Here’s what I think I know. JJ (Abrams) wrote Episode VII, as well as drafts for VIII and IX. Then Rian Johnson arrived and wrote The Last Jedi entirely. I believe there was some sort of general consensus on the main lines of the trilogy, but apart from that, every director writes and realises his film in his own way. Rian Johnson and JJ Abrams met to discuss all of this, although Episode VIII is still his very own work. I believe Rian didn’t keep anything from the first draft of Episode VIII.”

Star Wars had previously announced that Rian Johnson would be working on his own trilogy in the Star Wars universe while Benioff and Weiss would be working on their own Star Wars films.

Recent rumors suggested that Benioff and Weiss’ Star Wars films could be set in The Old Republic, a popular time period in the Star Wars universe popularized by BioWare’s Knights of the Old Republic game featuring iconic characters Darth Revan, Bastila Shan, and Darth Malak. The game would get a sequel in Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords. The time period would also receive its own MMO in Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Kennedy hinted that the new stories might actually be taking place set in the distant past in the Star Wars universe, “Yes, absolutely. I think that that’s absolutely on the horizon. We’re looking at whether we can move massively in one direction of the other. It’s still Star Wars, and holding on to the DNA of what George created is still very important to us.” She would add, “I think this is a huge opportunity to step into the galaxy in a little bit different part of the timeline.”

While Benioff, Weiss, and Rian might be central to the future of Star Wars, Kennedy did confirm they are looking for new talent, “We have a series of filmmakers that we’re bringing into the fold, that we can start to look at as directing talent, and we’re trying to bring women into the mix as well.” She added, “We’re making it very inclusive with the group of people that we’re pulling together.”

What do you make of Kennedy’s statements? Do you think this is a good strategy to map out the saga instead of ruing what appears to be a patched together trilogy?

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