As Obi-Wan approaches, Star Wars confirms even more TV series, films

Production woes, entirely new series, casting leaks—but also major questions unanswered.

Read the whole story

 

[vegetaman]

Honestly, I loved Rogue One and am excited for Kenobi/Ahsoka/Mando... Also interesting that the push of Kenobi from film to TV may have been what let us get Hayden back (which IMO is fantastic). But, in regards to KK's comment... You sure can't go back to the old well after the ST pretty much nuked it from orbit. Probably should've figured out some semblance of a long term vision for the franchise or something maybe.

 

[50me12]

Now it does seem so abundantly clear that we can’t do that.

I dunno ... If the recent Star Wars content seems to show anything it is that there seems to be an infinite desire to shoehorn in old / other characters whenever possible, often at the expense of other things. It's so frequent it seems like an addiction that I'm not sure they can break.

 

[Nowicki]

Now it does seem so abundantly clear that we can’t do that.

I dunno ... If the recent Star Wars content seems to show anything it is that there seems to be an infinite desire to shoehorn in old / other characters whenever possible, often at the expense of other things. It's so frequent it seems like an addiction that I'm not sure they can break.

Well considering the amount of stuff they turned to legends they have some catching up to do, and some fan service to do before people will brush that off. I for one cant wait for them to do a Revan series. It seems like something with enough significance that it will be part of that shoe horning of older characters.

 

[timber]

Release Kenobi first and prove you can do it properly and then we will talk about the next TV/series/whatever.

 

[50me12]

Release Kenobi first and prove you can do it properly and then we will talk about the next TV/series/whatever.

Disney: "No I don't think I will..."

-opens fire hose of content-

 

[thekaj]

I absolutely love anything Taika Waititi does, so I’m onboard with a Rogue Squadron movie, but they are 100% going to confuse the very casual Star Wars watchers into thinking this is either a re-release or Rogue One or a sequel.

 

[tomdzu]

Well, we kinda knew this would happen back in October 2012 when Lucasfilm was sold to Disney… to tell you the truth, I’m surprised it took this long for the explosion of content to appear

 

[quamquam quid loquor]

Release Kenobi first and prove you can do it properly and then we will talk about the next TV/series/whatever.

Disney: "No I don't think I will..."

-opens fire hose of content-

Given Paramount+'s success with Star Trek content, Disney+ needs to open the Star Wars flood gates and take our money - I will watch it all.

 

[Thad Boyd]

"Grammar Rodeo," referring to a Simpsons episode where Bart skips town with classmates in a stolen car.

The car wasn't stolen, it was rented with a fake ID.

 

[deltaproximus]

Are there expected to be any new reveals at the upcoming Star Wars Celebration convention next week in Anaheim, and is Ars by chance sending anyone to cover it?

Edit: FWIW, I will be attending SWC with a friend, if Ars might like some freelance coverage

 

[quamquam quid loquor]

All this streaming content is now getting too much. Just as people started 'cutting the cord' a decade ago, I'm doing the contemporary version: I've nearly purged all of my subscriptions.

I think I'm down to either free services (BBC/ITV/C4) or trial periods.

Just too much content.

Covid's nearly over, summer is fast approaching, go outside!

Obligatory- hey, America, if you want chose, make it happen somewhere it counts. Break your corrupt two party political system.

If you are on a budget, just binging them one month a year like DVDs after they finish release is pretty affordable. I have 10 subscriptions, but the cost makes sense since I share them with my entire family (Sadly this may no longer be the case for Netflix).

 

[Frodo Douchebaggins]

Covid's nearly over

I remember having optimism.

 

[50me12]

Now it does seem so abundantly clear that we can’t do that.

I dunno ... If the recent Star Wars content seems to show anything it is that there seems to be an infinite desire to shoehorn in old / other characters whenever possible, often at the expense of other things. It's so frequent it seems like an addiction that I'm not sure they can break.

Well considering the amount of stuff they turned to legends they have some catching up to do, and some fan service to do before people will brush that off. I for one cant wait for them to do a Revan series. It seems like something with enough significance that it will be part of that shoe horning of older characters.

I'm not opposed to some legends type content provided it isn't littered / distorted with "did someone say perfect game!!?!" injection with old characters and events.

Let some contents stand on its own Disney!

 

[graylshaped]

This all sounds fine to me, particularly seeing something set in a prior time period.

I do hope we find out how Grogu manages to no longer be part of the universe in the films where ostensible he exists... I am also hoping it isn't a tragic end, given my kid picked out a Grogu backpack for school, and wears Grogu PJs while sleeping in Grogu sheets and bedding, all of which he selected.

Reading the above tells me Favreau knew what he was doing.

 

[timber]

Release Kenobi first and prove you can do it properly and then we will talk about the next TV/series/whatever.

Disney: "No I don't think I will..."

-opens fire hose of content-

That will undoubtedly be the way.

But as Neflix is starting to discover give it enough time and you may begin to regret it.

 

[ThatGuyFromEarth]

I remember back in 1978 or so when I was reading a Sci-Fi magazine and I found out George Lucas planned there to be nine episodes to the Star Wars series… I was thrilled beyond belief.

Unfortunately it took 42 frickin’ years for that to happen and it involved dealing with Jar Jar Binks…

Kids these days don’t know how good they have it.

 

[Aurich]

All this streaming content is now getting too much. Just as people started 'cutting the cord' a decade ago, I'm doing the contemporary version: I've nearly purged all of my subscriptions.

I think I'm down to either free services (BBC/ITV/C4) or trial periods.

You don't really need to announce to people when you're not interested in things.

I'm personally glad Star Wars has shifted to 'the small screen'. Pandemic timing aside it's just nice to have room for stories to breathe.

Mandalorian has been so much fun. Yes, it had the Luke fan service, and you know what? Bring it on, it was a giant "sorry about the last trilogy" message from people who care, and I was there for it. But it wasn't just that, there was a lot of original heart in all of it.

Bad Batch was great. The animated Clone Wars ended on such a high note the last couple long episodes could have been a feature film. Rebels was good.

Book of Boba Fett wasn't amazing, but you know it wasn't *bad*, just didn't live up to its potential.

Overall Star Wars TV is looking strong, and I hope they keep giving Filoni the reins.

 

[ChefJeff789]

I know it won't be exactly the same, but I would REALLY enjoy some version of the Thrawn trilogy on the small screen. It introduced some fun concepts and the Noghri were great. Also, the fact that Mara Jade hasn't been brought back into canon is a travesty of the highest order.

 

[50me12]

Release Kenobi first and prove you can do it properly and then we will talk about the next TV/series/whatever.

Disney: "No I don't think I will..."

-opens fire hose of content-

That will undoubtedly be the way.

But as Neflix is starting to discover give it enough time and you may begin to regret it.

Well as critical as I am of Disney's handling of Star Wars their quality has been higher than a lot of Netflix's scattershot of different content.

 

[hambone]

Four new serialized SW shows eh?


"OK thnx" is about all I can muster.


Serialized sci-fi in an established universe (Marvel Universe, Star Wars, Star Trek) relies on derivative narrative continuity to generate drama. But over time the accumulation of characters and story lines become so baroque and convoluted it becomes a chore to make sense of. And because it's derivative, well, it looses its shine after a over-exposure.


So I'm actually really optimistic about the revival of episodic sci-fi with the new Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. In theory, every episode is a clean slate to explore interesting issues in technology, ethics, politics, duty, and wholly unknown enemies / dangers. Doesn't matter much if its Capt Pike or Kirk or Picard or Capt Timmy. If done well it keeps the show way more fresh and engaging. Hoping to check out the first few episodes this weekend.

 

[Carewolf]

This all sounds fine to me, particularly seeing something set in a prior time period.

I do hope we find out how Grogu manages to no longer be part of the universe in the films where ostensible he exists... I am also hoping it isn't a tragic end, given my kid picked out a Grogu backpack for school, and wears Grogu PJs while sleeping in Grogu sheets and bedding, all of which he selected.

Reading the above tells me Favreau knew what he was doing.

Well, with the hints of Thrawn. I am hoping the TV series ends up the extended universe, and the sequel movies are no longer cannon.. But perhaps I am too optimistic in Disney doing something right.

 

[LucretiusNaturale]

Well, we kinda knew this would happen back in October 2012 when Lucasfilm was sold to Disney… to tell you the truth, I’m surprised it took this long for the explosion of content to appear

The Solo movie seemed to slow things down and they regrouped. The Mandalorian TV series success seems to have shifted their strategy to more TV content and more cautious approach to movies.

 

[WorldMaker]

I absolutely love anything Taika Waititi does, so I’m onboard with a Rogue Squadron movie, but they are 100% going to confuse the very casual Star Wars watchers into thinking this is either a re-release or Rogue One or a sequel.

The confusion has already started. The article kind of mashes the two projects into a couple of run-on sentences in a confusing paragraph, but the Rogue Squadron based project is different from Waititi's and will be directed by Wonder Woman's Patty Jenkins. (Also yes, that will confuse anyone expecting a Rogue One "sequel", but on the flipside, most Rogue Squadron stuff is close enough on the timeline it won't disappoint too much for people hoping for that.) (Given Wonder Woman's strengths, especially some of the WWI dog fighter feel of the first film, I'm very curious to see what Patty Jenkins does with the project.)

Meanwhile, Waititi's Star Wars film is currently untitled, we don't know what it is supposed to be about, where it might be on the timeline, and we don't when it will be released. Mysterious! The only hint given so far now beyond Writer and Director, as the article mentions, is that it is supposed to release before the Rogue Squadron movie, which puts it "really soon now" if Rogue Squadron stays on target and the most likely release slot only a few months before.

Disney has a lot of "Untitled Star Wars spots" on the next few years (they still claim to be alternating Star Wars movies and Avatar movies in the coveted Holiday Release Slot for the next most of a decade), and it's really interesting how much they are keeping mysterious in that roadmap for how high profile Star Wars can be. We know more about projects that fell through the cracks (the Game of Thrones folks, probably Rian Johnson's?) than the projects actually happening such as Waititi's. It's fascinating.

 

[Deleted member 174040]

All this streaming content is now getting too much. Just as people started 'cutting the cord' a decade ago, I'm doing the contemporary version: I've nearly purged all of my subscriptions.

I think I'm down to either free services (BBC/ITV/C4) or trial periods.

You don't really need to announce to people when you're not interested in things.

I'm personally glad Star Wars has shifted to 'the small screen'. Pandemic timing aside it's just nice to have room for stories to breathe.

Mandalorian has been so much fun. Yes, it had the Luke fan service, and you know what? Bring it on, it was a giant "sorry about the last trilogy" message from people who care, and I was there for it. But it wasn't just that, there was a lot of original heart in all of it.

Bad Batch was great. The animated Clone Wars ended on such a high note the last couple long episodes could have been a feature film. Rebels was good.

Book of Boba Fett wasn't amazing, but you know it wasn't *bad*, just didn't live up to its potential.

Overall Star Wars TV is looking strong, and I hope they keep giving Filoni the reins.

Co-sign.

We’re kinda in a golden age of scifi for us who were old enough to cut our teeth on this stuff.

I think sometimes we can lose sight of the fact that it’s supposed to to be fun and supposed to entertain us. We’re supposed to get lost in these worlds for an hour or two at a time.

And for the most part they’re doing it!

Between keeping up with Star Wars, Star Trek and these epic NBA playoffs, I’ve nearly forgotten all about the misery of the pandemic and the consequences we’re living through right now (nearly, not totally.)

This is the way.

 

[Aurich]

Well, with the hints of Thrawn. I am hoping the TV series ends up the extended universe, and the sequel movies are no longer cannon.. But perhaps I am too optimistic in Disney doing something right.

Thrawn is already in the canon screen universe, he was the major villain in Rebels. So whatever they do with him is going to be directly tied to that, not the old novels, I'm pretty sure.

 

[Muon]

All this streaming content is now getting too much. Just as people started 'cutting the cord' a decade ago, I'm doing the contemporary version: I've nearly purged all of my subscriptions.

I think I'm down to either free services (BBC/ITV/C4) or trial periods.

You don't really need to announce to people when you're not interested in things.

I'm personally glad Star Wars has shifted to 'the small screen'. Pandemic timing aside it's just nice to have room for stories to breathe.

Mandalorian has been so much fun. Yes, it had the Luke fan service, and you know what? Bring it on, it was a giant "sorry about the last trilogy" message from people who care, and I was there for it. But it wasn't just that, there was a lot of original heart in all of it.

Bad Batch was great. The animated Clone Wars ended on such a high note the last couple long episodes could have been a feature film. Rebels was good.

Book of Boba Fett wasn't amazing, but you know it wasn't *bad*, just didn't live up to its potential.

Overall Star Wars TV is looking strong, and I hope they keep giving Filoni the reins.

Let's be fair. It is far better for people to fart out loud or at least announce their silent farts than just let us discover them without warning. I appreciate the honesty, as much as I wonder why they spend time waving their nerdrage fists at the clouds.

To quote a recent review, "we got dumped," and people have very different ways of recovering from that.

 

[lamarcheb]

Seriously would like to see some content that takes place after The Rise of Skywalker. It’s a clean slate and so much could happen with new characters.

 

[Fatesrider]

Release Kenobi first and prove you can do it properly and then we will talk about the next TV/series/whatever.

Disney: "No I don't think I will..."

-opens fire hose of content-

Ah, the old throw shit at the wall to see what sticks maneuver. Different analogy, but ultimately the same smell.

 

[ClusteredIndex]

I know it's commercial overload in many ways, yet I'm excited nonetheless.


But, I'm still disappointed Darth Maul was cut out of Kenobi.

 

[ardent]

Now it does seem so abundantly clear that we can’t do that.

I dunno ... If the recent Star Wars content seems to show anything it is that there seems to be an infinite desire to shoehorn in old / other characters whenever possible, often at the expense of other things. It's so frequent it seems like an addiction that I'm not sure they can break.

To be clear, this is the same woman who alleged that "it's not like there's some huge well of existing material to work from."

 

[IntergalacticWalrus]

Squeezing that Star Wars lemon for all its worth!

 

[50me12]

I know it's commercial overload in many ways, yet I'm excited nonetheless.


But, I'm still disappointed Darth Maul was cut out of Kenobi.

If folks coming back from the dead / showing up all the time ... wasn't so much a thing already I could almost go for a "Darth Maul is always around" kind of thing in the series. Not as the main bad guy but just have him resurrected constantly... show up, die.... wait for the next series.

 

[Frodo Douchebaggins]

Maybe this is kind of dumb and I might be the only person who wants this, but I'd like to see an extreme prequel series where the first people begin to develop an ability to use The Force, and the effects it had on those people and the people around them. Presumably it was a gradual thing, right? A little bit of telekinesis here and there, but more and more over time, and the religions that begin to form because of it.

The basic idea has been done before (there was that movie Chronicle, which comes to mind) but I think it could be interesting if done as a drama type series.

 

[quamquam quid loquor]

Maybe this is kind of dumb and I might be the only person who wants this, but I'd like to see an extreme prequel series where the first people begin to develop an ability to use The Force, and the effects it had on those people and the people around them. Presumably it was a gradual thing, right? A little bit of telekinesis here and there, but more and more over time, and the religions that begin to form because of it.

The basic idea has been done before (there was that movie Chronicle, which comes to mind) but I think it could be interesting if done as a drama type series.

In an alternate universe, George Lucas is involved and it becomes a David Attenborough voiced documentary of midi-chlorians

 

[Frodo Douchebaggins]

Maybe this is kind of dumb and I might be the only person who wants this, but I'd like to see an extreme prequel series where the first people begin to develop an ability to use The Force, and the effects it had on those people and the people around them. Presumably it was a gradual thing, right? A little bit of telekinesis here and there, but more and more over time, and the religions that begin to form because of it.

The basic idea has been done before (there was that movie Chronicle, which comes to mind) but I think it could be interesting if done as a drama type series.

In an alternate universe, George Lucas is involved and it becomes a David Attenborough voiced documentary of midi-chlorians

Thanks, I hate it.

 

[timber]

Release Kenobi first and prove you can do it properly and then we will talk about the next TV/series/whatever.

Disney: "No I don't think I will..."

-opens fire hose of content-

That will undoubtedly be the way.

But as Neflix is starting to discover give it enough time and you may begin to regret it.

Well as critical as I am of Disney's handling of Star Wars their quality has been higher than a lot of Netflix's scattershot of different content.

If they let Filoni reign on everything I am confided that everything will be OK.

If not I am not so certain.