The upcoming Star Wars Dawn of the Jedi movie directed by James Mangold might be no more. That’s coming from two different people who have shared Star Wars leaks in the past.
The film set thousands of years before the Skywalker Saga which would have explored the very first Jedi was announced at Star Wars Celebration in 2023. It was one of three films announced during the Lucasfilm Showcase. None of those films have materialised or even got into proper production as of yet.
Dawn of the Jedi had been co-written by James Mangold and Beau Willimon (House of Cards creator, Severance). The latter most recently was behind the masterful Narkina 5 and Ghorman arcs of Andor. Whilst there are always rumours of Star Wars film cancellations made up by bad actors, there is some sound reasoning behind the latest rumours.
Paused Or Dead?
The most recent official update on this film came from Kathleen Kennedy who recently left her post as president. In her exit interview with Deadline back in January, she confirmed Mangold and Willimon completed the film’s script. She called it “incredible” and “breaking the mold” but it was also “on hold”.
Earlier this week, news broke from HBO that Willimon would be writing a Game of Thrones film. With this update, a fan asked renowned film insider Jeff Sneider if the first Jedi film was over. In Thursday night’s episode of The Hot Mic, Sneider shared what he has heard on the Mangold led flick. His full quote has been transcribed below:
“Oh god…I haven’t asked yet. I haven’t asked my source but I’ve heard is true. I heard this week actually. I just heard it. That’s like dead. But I haven’t asked so I can’t say that conclusively but it doesn’t sound good. I think Mangold is focused on that Timothée Chalamet heist movie is what I think. I think Swamp Thing could be after that.”
As you just read, it’s not confirmation the film is done for. It’s just something someone has told Jeff and not his source which has been reliable when it comes to Star Wars reporting. Jeff will report things he believes are to be true in his newsletter. The podcast is not where he shares his reporting and is more rumours than leaks.
However, earlier that day a Twitter account that has had a couple of small Star Wars scoops in the past echoed Jeff. FivesWalker said “I am hearing that James Mangold’s DOTJ is dead dead. No other info than that right now.” It’s interesting timing that the same information is coming from two places.
As someone who has enjoyed Mangold’s work and we know Willimon can create incredible Star Wars, having these two develop an interesting Star Wars film was such an exciting prospect. Personally, this film alongside the Rey film were easily my most anticipated projects coming out of Lucasfilm. Given we now have new leadership at Lucasfilm, it looks like they’ve decided to axe it. Hopefully we get clarity on the situation soon.
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