Star Wars New Jedi Order Movie Moves Forward After Years of Silence

Despite Star Wars: The Mandalorian & Grogu struggling at the box office, Disney is continuing development on two upcoming Star Wars films. The Sept. 3 issue of Production Weekly listed both Star Wars: New Jedi Order and Dave Filoni’s untitled movie as active projects. Inclusion in the magazine does not guarantee both movies have received greenlights and entered production, but it suggests they remain active.

What do we know about Star Wars: New Jedi Order?

Star Wars: New Jedi Order will reportedly bring back Daisy Ridley as Rey roughly 15 years after the events of Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker as she rebuilds the Jedi. Because the Star Wars fandom holds largely negative feelings about the sequel trilogy, especially after The Rise of Skywalker, New Jedi Order faces a steep challenge due to its direct ties to that film.

The project has cycled through several writers. Damon Lindelof and Justin Britt-Gibson were the original screenwriters before Disney dismissed them. Steven Knight was also attached to write, but left the project in 2024. In January 2025, Variety reported that George Nolfi is writing the script. Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy is directing the film. New Jedi Order was originally scheduled for release on Dec. 17, 2027, but Disney removed it from the release schedule in May 2025.

What about Dave Filoni’s project?

Details about Dave Filoni’s untitled film have been scarce, but Production Weekly provides a description noting that the story focuses on the New Republic and concludes the interconnected narratives told in The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, and other Disney Plus series. While rumors previously tied the film to recent Disney Plus shows, observers are watching to see if that premise holds up after The Mandalorian and Grogu underperformed at the box office.

Filoni took over as president and chief creative officer at Lucasfilm in January 2025. He has overseen numerous Star Wars television series, including The Clone Wars, Rebels, Ahsoka, and Maul – Shadow Lord. While most of his series received positive receptions, critics often point out that his work requires viewers to follow an increasingly complicated and insular universe.

The only Star Wars film with a concrete release date is Star Wars: Starfighter, which takes place five years after the events of Rise of Skywalker and stars Ryan Gosling as a pilot. Shawn Levy is directing the movie, which arrives in theaters on May 28, 2027. While feature films have been sparse in recent years, the franchise has remained active through television projects like The Ninth Jedi and the tactics game Star Wars: Zero Company.

Source: Polygon