Just as Star Wars is about to wrap up with Episode 9, The Rise Of Skywalker, it seems like Disney have big plans for the future of the franchise.
This morning we got news from the Hollywood Reporter that Kevin Feige will officially be developing a Star Wars film at Disney. The Marvel President is arguably one of the most successful movie producers, if not the most successful movie producer of all time and I think everyone is well aware of how much the MCU has raked in with him at the helm.
Star Wars, however, has went from one of the biggest movie sagas of all time to slowly having dwindling interest from the fanbase with The Last Jedi derailing a lot of their love for the series.
Kathleen Kennedy Out?
The blame is often put at Kathleen Kennedy’s feet who is pretty much seen as the one who has ruined the franchise in some fans eyes and whilst Disney have stated that Feige will be working alongside Kennedy as part of this, I personally think this is a lot of PR talk. This is a desperate move by Disney in my opinion and to call someone across to steer the ship seems like an act that really shows they don’t have much faith in the heads that are currently behind it.
Though there have and always will be rumors that Kathleen Kennedy will be removed from Star Wars, I personally believe that Feige has been brought in more as a consultant to help guide the franchise going forward and to also create his own branching universe that the company can fall back on should Kennedy’s projects fail.
Now, this is interesting because one of the main points during the Spider-man Disney Sony Deal collapse was that Feige did not have enough time to dedicate to the sony property and the fact that he is working on Star Wars now as well as Disney could be a huge deciding factor.
The Official Statement
Disney Co Chairman Alan Horn told the Hollywood Reporter:
“We are excited about the projects Kathy and the Lucasfilm team are working on, not only in terms of Star Wars but also Indiana Jones and reaching into other parts of the company including Children of Blood and Bone with Emma Watts and Fox. With the close of the Skywalker Saga, Kathy is pursuing a new era in Star Wars storytelling, and knowing what a die-hard fan Kevin is, it made sense for these two extraordinary producers to work on a Star Wars film together.”
This is interesting because it kind of seems like Disney have lost faith in Kennedy but don’t want to oust her just yet before the final chapter in her trilogy, so they are making it seem like everything is amicable. Whether The Rise Of Skywalker does well I think will be the deciding factor, though it probably will kill at the box office.
In addition to this, Feige already has the internet speculating by stating that he has an unnamed major actor in mind for a specific role in his upcoming film.
Disney at the moment are going all out with star wars and though they did say that they were calming down with the release of films, I think this announcement proves otherwise.
In addition to the Feige movie, there is also a separate Rian Johnson trilogy in the work as well as another one with The Game Of Thrones showrunners behind it. So yeah…it’s pretty much doomed if Feige doesn’t get involved.
Your Thoughts
Obviously I’d love to hear your thoughts on this news and if you think it’s a PR stunt or do you think that we should take the studio at their word? Should Disney pump the brakes on Star Wars and do you agree that this is an act of desperation? Comment below and let me know!
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