Star Wars seems to have become a revolving door for writers and directors as of late. Whether projects simply change hands or get scrapped entirely, fewer and fewer movies have safely made it from announcement to production since Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Unfortunately, it looks like the upcoming Rey film, currently going by the working title Star Wars: New Jedi Order, has once again joined the ranks of Star Wars movies trapped in the development cycle with writer Steven Knight (Peaky Blinders) leaving the project.
Knight signed onto the film in March 2023, after the film’s original screenwriters Damon Lindelof and Justin Britt-Gibson were asked to leave. That was probably the first sign that this movie would see delays like so many others. Lucasfilm is currently searching for a new writer to replace Knight. Director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy (Ms. Marvel) is still attached to the project, but because of this delay, production likely won’t be able to start on the movie until well into 2025, which will cause it to miss its projected December 2026 release date.
This development is unfortunate, as the premise of Star Wars: New Jedi Order sounds incredibly interesting. Taking place 15 years after The Rise of Skywalker, the film is set to follow a more mature Rey (Daisy Ridley) as she works to rebuild the Jedi Order, hoping to learn from the mistakes that Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) made.
As much as it would be cool to see more of the Star Wars universe outside of the Skywalker saga, there’s still a lot to tap into with Rey. Her heroic journey was somewhat overshadowed by her lineage in The Rise of Skywalker, and she deserves another chance to show just how badass she is. There’s also the fact that we still don’t have many women-centered stories in Star Wars that have made it to the big screen, especially one about a Jedi master.
That was one of the things that drew Obaid-Chinoy to this project, telling Variety that the Star Wars project that interests her most “is in Rey’s journey as a female Jedi. That’s how I can best bring my experiences to it.”
This news may be somewhat welcome to those experiencing Star Wars burnout. But looking back on when the sequel trilogy first came out and remembering all of the young girls dressed as Rey, watching them experience the same joy I felt when I first watched Star Wars as a kid, that’s who this movie is for. For the fans who finally fully saw themselves on screen with Rey. For the fans who connect with her story and want to see more of her.
Hopefully this latest update isn’t the signature on New Jedi Order’s death certificate and another writer can be found in a somewhat timely manner. Given Star Wars’ current track record, however, it’s hard to be optimistic that this movie will make it out of development and into production. Rey deserves to have more of her story told, and it’s a shame that we might not even get to see it.
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From https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/rey-movie-update-bad-news-star-wars-fans/
