For a while, it’s been looking as though the future of Star Wars rests squarely on television. But now that the Skywalker Saga has wrapped up, Lucasfilm is in need of a new story to fill the franchise’s void on the big screen. And it sounds like they’ve just taken the first steps toward making that happen. Via The Hollywood Reporter, the studio has tapped J.D. Dillard to develop a new Star Wars film. Unfortunately, it’s still not known whether he’ll direct the movie himself.
Dillard is perhaps best known for directing the film Sleight, which opened in 2016. His most recent feature, Sweetheart, starred Kiersey Clemons and was released by Blumhouse last year. Dillard is currently working on his next project, a Korean war epic titled Devotion. That movie is currently in the pre-production stage.
UPDATE: Deadline is reporting the rumor that this new film will take place on Exegol, the Sith planet introduced in last year’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker as the site of the final stand of the Resistance against the Emperor’s forces. It is also the home of the Sith Eternal cult, also glimpsed in the film. Perhaps this new movie will give audiences a chance to learn more about the planet and how exactly The Emperor was resurrected.
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THR also notes that it’s still not clear whether Disney and Lucasfilm will release Dillard’s Star Wars film in theaters or on Disney+. However, they have Dillard pegged to work on the movie alongside writer Matt Owens. Previously, Owens has written for a variety of Marvel TV shows, including Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Luke Cage, and The Defenders.
To call this latest news blindsiding would be an understatement. Regardless, THR insists that the project is separate from other Star Wars films Lucasfilm has in development. That slate consists of a new trilogy spearheaded by Rian Johnson and another film executive produced by Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige. The studio is also supposedly courting Taika Waititi to direct a Star Wars movie of his own. However, they still haven’t provided any indication as to how those discussions are going.
What would you like to see from J.D. Dillard and Matt Owens’ Star Wars film? Tell us what you think in the comment section below!
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