It doesn’t seem like very long ago that Disney confirmed that Rian Johnson would be taking on a new standalone Star Wars trilogy. Now, that’s looking like the tip of the iceberg, as there’s a lot more Star Wars on the way.
First up: Game Of Thrones creators David Benioff and DB Weiss have signed on to write and produce a new series of Star Wars films that will be separate from the Skywalker saga and the trilogy that Johnson is cooking up. There’s no date assigned yet, or any kind of details about plot at all. The duo released a statement (via EW) saying “In the summer of 1977 we traveled to a galaxy far, far away, and we’ve been dreaming of it ever since. We are honoured by the opportunity, a little terrified by the responsibility, and so excited to get started as soon as the final season of Game Of Thrones is complete.”
Which would suggest they won’t get down to business until some point next year. It would also suggest that Confederate, their highly controversial planned project about an alternate America in which the South won the Civil War, may have been quietly put down.
Kathleen Kennedy echoed Benioff and Weiss’ statement, saying “David and Dan are some of the best storytellers working today. Their command of complex characters, depth of story and richness of mythology will break new ground and boldly push Star Wars in ways I find incredibly exciting.”
But that’s not all. Word that Disney was developing a live-action Star Wars TV series has been going around for a little while, but it seems like reporting on that project as a single entity may have been incorrect. Yes indeed, they’re working on a bunch, according to THR, for their new streaming service.
Disney CEO Bob Iger told investors that “We are developing not just one, but a few Star Wars series specifically for the Disney direct-to-consumer app. We’ve mentioned that and we are close to being able to reveal at least one of the entities that is developing that for us. Because the deal isn’t completely closed, we can’t be specific about that. I think you’ll find the level of talent … on the television front will be rather significant as well.”
With Episode IX set to close the new trilogy in 2019, it’s clear that Disney isn’t about to let the Star Wars universe go anywhere. Now, if they could find their way to changing up their choice of filmmakers, that would be great too…
Solo: A Star Wars Story is in cinemas from 25 May 2018. Get all the latest sci-fi news with every issue of SciFiNow.
