Kathleen Kennedy is NOT Retiring – Speaks on the Future of Star Wars!

Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy sat down with Deadline to straighten out the rumors regarding her departure and shared insights on the future of Star Wars.

Key takeaways:

• Kennedy confirmed that she is not retiring. “I will never retire from movies. I will die making movies.”

• Talks about her successor have taken place, but an announcement will be made “months or a year down the road”

• Kennedy further confirms that any rumors about her quitting have been entirely manufactured

• She additionally acknowledges the online fervor around cancelled projects explaining “…not every single thing we put in development we are going to make. That’s not unusual. We want to make those things that we feel are the best.”

Lucasfilm

Looking ahead:

• Future Star Wars projects were also confirmed including upcoming films from Shawn Levy, Simon Kinberg, and James Mangold

• Shawn Levy’s project is the next Star Wars film after The Mandalorian and Grogu. It is a standalone film that will take place after Episode IX with “pretty much new characters”

• Simon Kinberg is currently scripting the next Star Wars trilogy that Kennedy says “moves us into the future”

• Regarding James Mangold’s prequel film, Kennedy says that he has been slightly delayed in writing due to awards season with his film, *A Complete Unknown. “*You have to accommodate top talent to a certain extent. And quality is so important with what it is we’re trying to do. I like to wait for people that I think are passionate and really good to step into Star Wars.”

Jesse Grant/Getty Images

Deeper dive:

• Taika Waititi’s Star Wars project is still technically alive, but Kennedy admits “He’s so busy. I love him. I think if we ever do get a script from Taika, it’s going to be fantastic. I already saw a first act that I loved, but tying him down, it’s tricky.”

• Kennedy praised Tony Gilroy’s work on Andor, but when it comes to a feature film in his future “I don’t think he ever believed he’d be a decade inside Star Wars. He’s writing some things on his own, and I think he’d like to get back into the director’s chair.”

The big picture: While succession talks have been occurring, Kathleen Kennedy’s retirement is not confirmed, and she is clearly working on many Star Wars projects that will continue the franchise’s storytelling into the next decade.

Check out Deadline’s full interview now, and stay tuned for more updates on all of these incredible projects!

Jesse Grant/Getty Images