Tim Connolly
After Colin Trevorrow left Star Wars: Episode IX, many fans assumed that Rian Johnson would be take his place at the helm. Well, today we found out why that didn’t happen.
Disney CEO Bob Iger dropped a bombshell this afternoon during a conference call discussing Disney’s financial year of 2017, by announcing that Rian Johnson, Writer-Director of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, will Create an All-New Star Wars Trilogy. An official statement was then posted on StarWars.com, confirming the news, and stating that Johnson’s trilogy – being produced alongside Ram Bergman – will be separate from the episodic Skywalker Saga, and will “introduce new characters from a corner of the galaxy that Star Wars lore has never before explored.”
No release dates have been set for the new films, however it’s likely a safe bet that they will follow the current trilogy when it wraps up in 2019.
Here is the official statement:
“For director Rian Johnson, Star Wars: The Last Jedi was just the beginning of his journey in a galaxy far, far away.
Lucasfilm is excited to announce that Johnson will create a brand-new Star Wars trilogy, the first of which he is also set to write and direct, with longtime collaborator Ram Bergman onboard to produce.
As writer-director of The Last Jedi, Johnson conceived and realized a powerful film of which Lucasfilm and Disney are immensely proud. In shepherding this new trilogy, which is separate from the episodic Skywalker saga, Johnson will introduce new characters from a corner of the galaxy that Star Wars lore has never before explored.”
“We all loved working with Rian on The Last Jedi,” said Kathleen Kennedy, president of Lucasfilm. “He’s a creative force, and watching him craft The Last Jedi from start to finish was one of the great joys of my career. Rian will do amazing things with the blank canvas of this new trilogy.”
Rian Johnson chimed in on social media regarding the news:
Obviously I hope you like The Last Jedi. But man now I REALLY hope you like The Last Jedi.
— Rian Johnson (@rianjohnson) November 9, 2017
“We had the time of our lives collaborating with Lucasfilm and Disney on The Last Jedi,” Johnson and Bergman added in a joint statement. “Star Wars is the greatest modern mythology and we feel very lucky to have contributed to it. We can’t wait to continue with this new series of films.”
Johnson’s upcoming Star Wars: The Last Jedi arrives in U.S. theaters on Dec. 15, 2017.
Alongside the trilogy of movies, Iger also confirmed that a live action Star Wars TV series was currently being developed by Disney, and will exclusively premiere through Disney’s planned streaming service, set to launch in 2019. It was previously confirmed that the Star Wars movies would be leaving Netflix and other streaming services to find a new home on Disney’s in-development platform, but now a new exclusive live-action series will add additional incentive for subscribing Star Wars fans. The service is set to launch in 2019, but a date for the Star Wars TV series was not announced.
