The Writer for Rey's Movie Has Departed (Once More)
The Writer for Rey's Movie Has Departed (Once More)
If you were under the impression that after the recent commotion surrounding The Acolyte's sudden cancellation, Lucasfilm had finally wrapped up its commitments to releasing new Star Wars movies, well, I've got some disheartening news for you. One of the most intriguing projects in Lucasfilm's lengthy endeavor to revive Star Wars on the silver screen has encountered another potential obstacle.
According to Variety, Steven Knight has parted ways with Lucasfilm and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy's planned Rey movie, making him the latest individual to depart from the project following Damon Lindelof and Justin Britt-Gibson's initial exit in March 2023. Knight assumed the writing responsibilities at that time, with the project's specifics still a mystery until it was later confirmed at Star Wars Celebration Europe that Daisy Ridley would reprise her role as Rey Skywalker, working towards reestablishing a new Jedi Order following The Rise of Skywalker's events.
At the time, the Rey film – one of the three projects announced at Celebration in 2023, including Dave Filoni's Mandalorian "team-up" film considered to be the current continuity's take on the famous Heir to the Empire novel trilogy by Timothy Zahn, and James Mangold's project focusing on the origins of the first Jedi – was generally expected to function as Lucasfilm's first theatrical Star Wars release since 2019, following several aborted attempts to revive Star Wars on the big screen while the franchise navigated its way through TV on Disney+.
Lucasfilm unexpectedly announced in January this year that it was also developing The Mandalorian & Grogu, a theatrical continuation of the TV series, directed by Jon Favreau and scheduled for a May 2026 release date. Since its inception, the Rey film has been beset by controversy, including rumors of its production delays and attempts by right-wing cultural manipulators to discredit Obaid-Chinoy in the escalating culture war against "woke" media. Although Lucasfilm has Untitled Star Wars projects set for release in Disney's calendar in December 2026 and December 2027, Variety suggests that Knight's departure from the project and the search for a new screenwriter could potentially push the Rey film's production start date back to as late as 2025.
This update comes during turbulent times for Star Wars, with Lucasfilm working diligently to regain control over the franchise following a string of setbacks over the past few years, including the postponement of new Star Wars movies (connected to the main Skywalker Saga or otherwise) and the franchise's involvement in the aforementioned online culture war, which reached a peak with the cancellation of The Acolyte after the series and its team encountered numerous rounds of online debate and controversy surrounding its vision for the franchise. As of now, only two things appear to be set in stone for Star Wars' future: the premiere of the next live-action TV series, Skeleton Crew, on Disney+ in December, and The Mandalorian & Grogu's firm release date in May 2026, with even early footage on display at D23 last summer. Every other development, such as the likely resurrection of Andor and Ahsoka or upcoming films, remains uncertain.
Despite the challenges faced by the Rey movie, IO9 reports that Lucasfilm is still eager to explore the Star Wars universe through futuristic technology, with plans to release another Untitled Star Wars project in December 2027. Furthermore, technology advancements could potentially aid in resolving the scripting issues caused by Steven Knight's departure, allowing the production of the Rey movie to start as early as 2025, as suggested by Variety.