Lucasfilm has a mess on its hands with Star Wars right now. Recently, we began to hear about James Mangold’s Dawn of the Order film and that it might begin shooting next year. That was a bit odd, because first up after The Mandalorian & Grogu was expected to be Daisy Ridley’s return as Rey for director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s untitled film. Well, we’re starting to figure out what’s really goin’ on.
Variety reports screenwriter Steven Knight has exited Obaid-Chinoy’s Star Wars movie. No reasons are given for the departure, but the film was already put on hold, so perhaps it has something to do with that. Knight joined last year as a replacement for previous writers, Damon Lindelof and Justin Britt-Gibson. The story is expected to take place after 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker and follow Rey as she builds a new Jedi Academy. New writers are being interviewed by Lucasfilm now.
The delay means production might not begin until late 2025. In a recent interview with ThePlaylist, Ridley said the film doesn’t have a set release date, but didn’t seem disturbed by Knight’s exit.
“We don’t have a date. I think the creative process is one that is really a journey”, Ridley said.
She continued, “And I’m really genuinely excited. And I have said I’m very excited, but I really do mean I’m excited about what’s coming. And I think we really have the luxury of making sure that this is the right. So when everything is ready to go, we will be going, and it’s very—yeah, it’s good.”
There are two open dates on the Lucasfilm calendar in December 2026 and December 2027, so it’s likely to land on one of those.
Ridley’s new film Magpie is in theaters now. You can check out our interview with her about it here.
