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It’s officially the beginning of a new era in this galaxy far, far away…or it will be soon, at least. Since the news was first announced Kathleen Kennedy to step down as president of Lucasfilmit seems the franchise has remained at a tipping point. 2026 will mark the first time a “Star Wars” project has been released exclusively in theaters since 2019’s “Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker,” which ended the Skywalker saga and cast more doubt on the direction this space opera might take in the years to come. In the meantime, the property has thrived in streaming, with shows like “The Mandalorian,” “Skeleton Crew” and especially “Andor” keeping the famous franchise in the spotlight. Now we have a pretty good idea of who will take Kennedy’s reins, and they’re both pretty familiar faces.
In a new Puck report, Matthew Belloni revealed the two names that Lucasfilm is preparing to take on the heavy lifting. According to Belloni, Lucasfilm should officially confirm the passing of the torch “in a week or two.” As for the two individuals at the top of the studio’s wish list? That would be Dave Filoni, the current chief creative officer of Lucasfilm and the creative talent behind series like “The Mandalorian,” “Ahsoka” and “Star Wars Rebels.” However, Filoni will apparently be joined by Lynwen Brennan, a behind-the-scenes executive who currently serves as president and CEO of Lucasfilm Business.
Now fans are wondering: What will this decision likely mean for the future of “Star Wars”?
Lucasfilm appears to be taking a page from DC Studios’ playbook
Let this put to rest any further debate about Kathleen Kennedy’s abilities as head of Lucasfilm since Disney bought the studio in 2012: Her job is so demanding that she didn’t need one, but two replacements. Kennedy’s long list of accomplishments as an industry titan and superproducer speaks for itself at this point, and analysts will have plenty of time in the coming weeks to properly assess his handling of “Star Wars” — from a creative dead zone left by the controversially received prequels to a revival of interest across multiple generations with the sequel trilogy and various spinoff films. Now all eyes will be on Dave Filoni and Lynwen Brennan to see how they steer this ship from here.
If all this triggers a feeling of déjà vu, well, it’s because /The film’s Ryan Scott cited both candidates as potential successors to Kennedy. in 2025. As he pointed out at the time, Lucasfilm appears to be taking the same approach as Warner Bros. Discovery has adopted with DC Studios. Just as James Gunn was chosen to lead the franchise creatively and allow producer Peter Safran to handle the business side of things, Lucasfilm reportedly chose writer/director/producer/CCO Filoni and Brennan for very similar roles. Since Filoni has very minimal directing experience, it makes perfect sense for Brennan to take charge while he focuses on the various “Star Wars” films and shows on Lucasfilm’s slate. Of course, Filoni’s only technically directed film to date (the 2008 animated feature “Clone Wars”) – a stark departure from Kennedy’s decades of experience producing big-screen ventures.
Stay tuned to see how this all develops.
