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Star Wars Celebration Japan left us with five takeaways and five questions.
The event was attended by 105,000 guests from 125 countries. An 8% increase in overall attendance from the last Celebration, which took place in 2023 in London. It seems like the event itself is growing in popularity, and the attendance for Star Wars Celebration Los Angeles in 2027 should be even higher.
Takeaways ⁉️
1. Dave Filoni’s Star Wars film is still in development
The film is not being outwardly promoted, and it wasn’t even listed during Kathleen Kennedy’s rundown of films in development at Lucasfilm. The film wasn’t even listed on official blog posts from StarWars.com. Yet various outlets that spoke to Filoni were given insight into the fact that the film is still happening and that Filoni is impressed by Kevin Feige’s timeline ability with Marvel.
2. Kathleen Kennedy confirmed a large film slate
Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy confirmed films by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, James Mangold, Taika Waititi, and a new trilogy by Simon Kinberg are all in development. If you include the Filoni film, that is a seven-film slate. Sure, some of these may not make it out of development, but it does show Lucasfilm is actively working on the theatrical future of Star Wars.
3. Shawn Levy and Ryan Gosling’s Star Wars: Starfighter arrives in 2027
The film goes into production this fall, and Star Wars: Starfighter arrives on May 28, 2027. This should give the team plenty of time for visuals and to get a strong cast onboard for the project. There is a rumored list of big names who have already passed on Starfighter, however, I would love to see a deeper dive into why some actors aren’t joining this particular Star Wars project.
Also, as a sidenote, Lucasfilm selling the Shawn Levy/Ryan Gosling Star Wars: Starfighter film as a standalone film that takes place after The Rise of Skywalker is hilarious. I feel like we’re getting Daisy Ridley and Oscar Isaac cameos at the very least. If Levy’s work on Deadpool & Wolverine is any indication, he’s going to give fans what they want.
4. Besides Ahsoka and Animation, Disney+ doesn’t have another live-action series or special in development (as far as we know)
Ahsoka season two is now filming, and Lucasfilm Animation has two new series next year with Maul — Shadow Lord and The Ninth Jedi (Star Wars: Visions spinoff). Yet what does the future of live-action Star Wars on Disney+ look like? It seems The Mandalorian is pivoting to be a big-screen franchise. Lucasfilm has been mum on the future of Skeleton Crew (more on that later). There seems to be no Acolyte spinoff in the works or even an Andor spinoff. Lucasfilm hasn’t even confirmed a wildcard live-action series like Doctor Aphra or The Old Republic. What will the future hold? Will there be one live-action Star Wars Disney+ series a year? Or will there be a strategy change to specials?
5. Star Wars has untapped potential in the Disney Parks
If Star Wars Celebration is any indication, there is untapped potential for the franchise within the Disney Parks. I would say Walt Disney Imagineering has endless opportunities to incorporate more droids into the Disney Parks. I think seeing more scenes added to Star Tours and Smugglers Run is a start, too. However, I believe Disney is going to continue to expand the story of Batuu in new ways, and I wouldn’t rule out another Star Wars storytelling direction for the Disney Parks.
Questions ⁉️
1. Who will be Kathleen Kennedy’s successor?
To me, it seems like this question will be answered at some point this year. Kathleen Kennedy will never retire from producing and filmmaking, but she may no longer want to lead Lucasfilm full time. I think it’s clear Dave Filoni is the Chief Creative Officer at Lucasfilm, but he needs to be paired with a business mind similar to what Pete Docter at Pixar and Jared Bush have at Walt Disney Animation. With that being said, it seems like Lynwen Brennan may be the natural successor. Although Carrie Beck could probably fit into Kennedy’s role as well.
2. Does Lucasfilm Animation have another non-Clone Wars era series in development?
I know Lucasfilm Animation loves doing stories set around The Clone Wars, but is there another Star Wars animation series in development that maybe takes place in a different period? Could we do a Rebels sequel that also acts as a prequel to The Mandalorian/Ahsoka/Book of Boba Fett, etc? What about a new animated show during the sequel trilogy or High Republic? It feels like there are more areas to explore outside of The Clone Wars, especially in animation.
3. The future of the Mandoverse after The Mandalorian and Grogu and the silence around Skeleton Crew?
What’s next for the Mandoverse after The Mandalorian and Grogu and Ahsoka season two? Are we going all in on the Dave Filoni film? Are we doing another season of TV before these stories all have that big crossover event? What’s going to happen? Also, why was Lucasfilm so silent about Skeleton Crew during Celebration? Even Manny Jacinto from the canceled The Acolyte appeared, yet it felt like there was hardly anything on Skeleton Crew. Why not bring out the actors or creatives? What’s next for the Skeleton Crew? That’s a big question that looms just as big as what’s next for the Mandoverse?
4. Why is Lucasfilm obsessed with the May release dates?
Lucasfilm will release two films in the May slot over the next two years. Sure, Star Wars was once a May franchise, but times have changed.
That May slot is firmly a Marvel Studios slot, and it feels a bit odd that they are still obsessed with trying to release films in May instead of just opting for the December release date and making their films feel like true end-of-the-year events. The holiday corridor always does big business, and if Disney is strategic, you could’ve had a every-other-year rotation of Star Wars and Avatar in December. I just don’t get the obsession with May, especially after the performance of Solo: A Star Wars Story and the potential to get lost in the shuffle.
5. Any reason why Los Angeles was picked over Anaheim for Star Wars Celebration 2027?
From a pure synergy and money-making standpoint, wouldn’t Disney want people closer to Disneyland Resort? Maybe Disney/Lucasfilm like the Los Angeles nostalgia, and maybe the George Lucas Museum in LA will play a role in Celebration 2027?
Yet I just can’t see why Disney wouldn’t want 100,000+ guests in Anaheim near Disneyland with the potential to do other D23 and Disney Parks events that coincide with Star Wars Celebration. It feels like money is being left on the table. Imagine doing an after-hours Star Wars event in Disneyland? What about the potential of doing a D23 presentation with some of the Star Wars creatives before Celebration, but on Disneyland Resort property? There are endless possibilities, and you could also make the same argument on why Disney/Lucasfilm doesn’t pick Orlando as well as they could utilize the proximity to Walt Disney World as well.
It also seems true that Destination D23/Star Wars Celebration will fall on odd years (2025, 2027), and then D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event will fall on even years. Perhaps a Marvel-themed event like AvengerCon could take place in even years as well. Disney is the one company that has the fan base and event ambitions to pull it off. Also, by running more fandom-oriented events, you may be able to curb the demand for the big D23 events. I’ve previously discussed the D23 event strategy at length.
Overall, Star Wars Celebration provided another newsworthy weekend for Lucasfilm and provided clarity on its direction. However, we were left with lingering questions that will surely be answered soon.
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Zach Perilstein is the Editor-in-Chief of the Boardwalk Times
