Dave Filoni Takes Over as Lucasfilm President

After 14 years at the helm, Kathleen Kennedy will step down from her role as president of Lucasfilm at the end of the week, according to an announcement from the studio today.  Dave Filoni will take over as president while retaining his role as chief creative officer. Lynwen Brennan, President & General Manager of Lucasfilm Business, will become co-president.

Kathleen Kennedy’s Leadership and Legacy

Kennedy became co-chair of Lucasfilm in 2012, handpicked by George Lucas. When Disney acquired the company and Lucas stepped away, she took over as president.

• Her career spans 50 years, including success as a producer on such iconic titles as E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, Back to the Future, The Goonies, and Jurassic Park.

• Kennedy co-founded Amblin Entertainment with Steven Spielberg and Frank Marshall. Her films have earned 25 Academy Awards (with more than 120 nominations).

• In her tenure at Lucasfilm, she led the studio through an expansive new era in Star Wars storytelling, including five films and several live-action series.

• She received the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award in 2018 and the 2022 Producers Guild of America’s Milestone Award.

• Late last February, reports emerged that Kennedy intended to retire by the end of 2025. Rumors resurfaced last week.   

• Kennedy will return to full-time producing. She is currently producing The Mandalorian & Grogu and Star Wars: Starfighter.

Incoming President Dave Filoni

With a background in animation, Dave Filoni joined the studio in 2005. Working alongside George Lucas, he helped build Lucasfilm Animation.

• Filoni’s influence on Star Wars storytelling includes Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels.

• He has collaborated closely with Jon Favreau on The Mandalorian streaming series and the feature film The Mandalorian & Grogu, which premieres later this spring.

• He serves as showrunner for Ashoka, which recently wrapped shooting for its second season.

Co-President Lynwen Brennan

Perhaps less well known to fans, Lynwen Brennan joined Lucasfilm's Industrial Light & Magic in 1999 after 10 years of experience in visual software effects development.

• She took over leadership of ILM in 2009. She continued to rise through the studio’s ranks, becoming Lucasfilm's General Manager in 2015 and President & General Manager in 2024.

• Her successful leadership of ILM includes global expansion with new studios in Vancouver, Singapore, and London, while continuing to grow its San Francisco studio.

• Brennan has received the 2019 Special Award for Outstanding Contribution to Film and Television from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts in Wales, as well as the Visual Effects Society Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022.

• She also received an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Royal Holloway University of London in 2018 for her work in the visual effects industry.

• Brennan was awarded Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II in 2016 for her contributions to the UK’s visual effects industry.

Follow Youtini for more on this story, and be sure to listen to next week’s episode ofThe Youtini Show for a full discussion of Lucasfilm’s change in leadership.