Tag Archives: Kathleen Kennedy

According to trade magazine Puck News Kathleen Kennedy’s contract as Lucasfilm CEO was extended for another three years until 2024. There has been no official confirmation by Disney or Lucasfilm yet so there is a slim chance it may not be true, however rumors about Ms Kennedy’s contract renewal were making the rounds in the past weeks with various “sources” reporting that her contract extension is a done deal. Puck News lends a lot of credence to this now since Puck News is a reputable trade magazine run by actual journalists with real industry contacts, and is not a fansite run by fans with “sources”. Other trade magazines also report the story, so despite the lack of an official confirmation it seems the story is true.
Of course no one is privy to what is going on behind the scenes – but in light of yet another quasi canceled movie, Rogue Squadron (according to insiders Patty Jenkins didn’t like the script at all and decided to walk), the once more delayed Indiana Jones 5 and a completely messed up sequel trilogy that ended on a whimper, not forgetting the box office disappointment that was Solo, one has to wonder what convinced Bob Chapek to extend Kathleen Kennedy’s contract. It’s rather telling that the writer for the Puck News article, former Hollywood Reporter editor and entertainment lawyer Matthew Beloni chose this headline to break the news: It’s Time to Take ‘Star Wars’ Movies Away from Kathy Kennedy.

I have nothing to add to this. So, what is your take on things?

Source: Puck News (hidden behind a paywall you can read 1 free article if you sign up)

Piloting the ship for another three years

We talked about the original plans for Galaxy’s Edge a few months ago. Back then it was reported that the Star Wars theme park was to be about the Original Trilogy, and that Bob Iger changed his mind when The Force Awakens was released, when he saw first footage. Now it turns out that this is not the whole story. Former Walt Disney World Vice President Dan Cockerell was a guest on the WDW Radio podcast and there he talked about how events unfolded. And it turns out that the reports from a few months back left out one important detail: a meeting Bob Iger had with Kathleen Kennedy. Click through for more!

Galaxy’s Edge with the Millennium Falcon

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The LA Times released a lengthy article about Kathleen Kennedy and Star Wars on Sunday. Of particular interest is the following section, which talks about the potential future of Star Wars on the big screen:

While the “Skywalker” saga is ending, the company won’t abandon the characters created in the most recent trilogy. Additionally, she said, the plan is to move beyond trilogies, which can be restricting.

“I think it gives us a more open-ended view of storytelling and doesn’t lock us into this three-act structure,” she said. “We’re not going to have some finite number and fit it into a box. We’re really going to let the story dictate that.”

So what could that mean? Click through for a discussion!

Kylo Ren & Rey

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Following the Kathleen Kennedy Interview for Rolling Stone, the Hollywood Reporter released an article with their take on how the future of Lucasfilm and Star Wars might look like. So what does the Hollywood Reporter think? Click through the details!

The future of Star Wars?

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Kathleen Kennedy was interviewed by Rolling Stone Magazine, and she gave a few interesting replies about her future at Lucasfilm and the possibility of George Lucas returning to Star Wars for one last time! So click through for highlights from the interview!

Source: Hollywood Reporter

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The Hollywood Reporter broke the very surprising news a few hours ago: Kevin Feige will develop a new Star Wars movie with Kathleen Kennedy!

According to a top Disney source that spoke to the Hollywood Reporter Kathleen Kennedy “remains in charge with no plans for any changes”.

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Kevin Feige and Kathleen Kennedy, with Mark Ruffalo

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Being friends with Bob Iger sure has its perks. For example, your get your own very private tour of Galaxy’s Edge without the distraction of other people crowding the place. Click through for two more photos!

Click for much larger version

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Most people here will probably remember the discussion about Kathleen Kennedy wearing a “The Force Is Female” t-shirt.
YouTube Channel Steele Wars did interview Kathleen Kennedy during SWCC and she was asked about that. And a very interesting tidbit was revealed: Kathleen Kennedy was genuinely surprised that that was even a topic or controversial, she didn’t know about any of the fan discussions. She then goes on and sets the record straight: the Force is in all of us (maybe even your cat). If you rewind the interview to the beginning you will also learn that Lucasfilm didn’t really have a plan for the whole trilogy, Kathleen Kennedy admits it in a very roundabout way, but it’s obvious that whatever plan they did have evolved a lot. .

The Steele Wars YouTube channel also revealed that Daisy Ridley really cannot get behind the idea of “ReyLo” (to the major disappointment of ReyLo fans everywhere, most certainly). The Steele Wars SWCC interviews are quite informative, so maybe check out some of the other videos as well. You can also find interviews with JJ Abrams, John Boyega, Naomie Ackie, Oscar Isaac and Anthony Daniels.

MTV News interviewed Kathleen Kennedy and she briefly talks about the things they are looking at, now that the Skywalker saga is coming to an end with Episode IX. Kathleen Kennedy mentions in the interview that some of the new characters from the last three movies (it’s not clear if she merely refers to the sequel trilogy here or the actual last three movies which include Solo and Rogue One)  may return in future projects.
She also talks about a 10-year plan for Star Wars which she is discussing with Benioff & Weiss and Rian Johnson.
Knights of the Old Republic is also touched upon briefly and Kathleen Kennedy confirms that they are talking about that all the time and that they are “developing something to look at”, without going into specifics. And lastly, Kathleen Kennedy also says that they have to be careful, that there needs to be a cadence with Star Wars, that it must not start to feel like too much. Kennedy then admits that they tried with Solo, to see if two movies a year might work, and she admits that it didn’t. But check out the full interview for yourself, you can see the clip on the MTV News Twitter feed (or click the image to go there directly). So, what do you think? Do you like the prospect of a KOTOR project and the idea of seeing some Disney era characters return in future movies (or series)? And of course there’s the prospect of a Rian Johnson trilogy. Latest news here is that whatever Johnson and Benioff & Weiss are doing will be closely coordinated.

Click the image for the video clip

With the perplexing case assortments and character selection of Hasbro Star Wars toys, fans have surmised that perhaps Lucasfilm is more involved in the process than expected. How many of us wondered why a case assortment contains the characters it does, or why other characters get released in every scale and format possible. But now a three-year-old video of Kathleen Kennedy speaking at the “The Most Powerful Women” event for Fortune has resurfaced and interestingly reveals what many have speculated. It is an interesting and illuminating video. And from where we stand it seems to have had an impact on merchandising of the new Disney Star Wars films. Let’s take a closer look at what Ms. Kennedy said.

The faces of the Disney Star Wars franchise

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BREAKING NEWS! Kathleen Kennedy’s contract with Lucasfilm has been extended for three (3) more years! The Hollywood Reporter has the exclusive full story!

The Hollywood Reporter has published an article which includes details about Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall (and others) receiving honorary Oscars. See the full article HERE.

Lucasfilm has announced that Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss will write and produce a new series of Star Wars films. This new series of films will be separate from both the episodic Skywalker films and the new trilogy that is being developed by Rian Johnson. Benioff and Weiss will begin working on the new series of films “as soon as the final season of Game of Thrones is complete.” Head over to StarWars.com to read the full statements from Kathleen Kennedy, Benioff, and Weiss. What are your thoughts regarding this latest announcement? Let us know!

Well, we have all heard by now that JJ Abrams has taken over for Colin Trevorrow as the Director of Episode IX, but THR also found out that he basically screwed over Paramount and a 10-Million Dollar obligation in order to take on the Star Wars project. You can read more about it at TheHollywoodReporter.com. Geeze, drama has become constanty associated with Disney’s Star Wars movies! (although TLJ has been pretty smooth, knock on wood!)

Colin Trevorrow’s dismissal from Star Wars: Episode IX  has left Lucasfilm and Kathleen Kennedy searching for a replacement, and it looks like they may turn to a familiar face. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Rian Johnson and J.J. Abrams are the top choices to replace Trevorrow. Furthermore, their sources indicate that continued issues with the script led to the Trevorrow’s dismissal. At the moment, Rian Johnson seems like the most likely candidate. Johnson is a well respected writer and may be better suited to finish the script. The word is that Johnson was a perfect fit for The Last Jedi and had a seamless working relationship with Lucasfilm.  It makes sense that Lucasfilm would want to work with him again. What do you think about the possibility of Rian Johnson or J.J. Abrams returning to direct Episode IX? Let us Know!

More details emerge on some of the issues surrounding the debacle known as the Han Solo film. Among the issues raised were the number of camera placement variations the directors used (3 instead of the expected 12-15 from Emperor Kennedy), Hiring an acting coach for the Lead Actor playing Han, and Lord & Miller shooting scenes as Kennedy and Kasdan requested only to film additional takes afterwards their way. Phew! Read more in this article from The Hollywood Reporter! Special Thanks to JTA Reader Martin for the heads up!

Following the shocking news that directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller had been fired over four and a half months into production, rumors began to swirl that Oscar winner Ron Howard was the top choice to take over the directing duties on the Han Solo film. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Ron Howard has officially been named as the new director of the Han Solo film. Howard will take over a contentious set, Lord and Miller were fired after clashing with Kathleen Kennedy and screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan. It’s extremely rare for a director to be fired this far into production, so a veteran director like Howard is a smart choice to finish the film under these bizarre circumstances. Head over to The Hollywood Reporter for the full story.  

Update: Click here to read to read the official announcement and a statement from Kathleen Kennedy at StarWars.com.

In a stunning development, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller will no longer direct the upcoming Han Solo standalone film. They have departed the project over creative differences with Lucasfilm. The search for a new director is underway. Head over to StarWars.com to read the full statements from Kathleen Kennedy and Lord and Miller.