Taika Waititi’s Star Wars Movie Put on Ice

Taika Waititi’s newest film, Klara and the Sun, opens on Friday. Its early reception is rough, with a 25% score on Rotten Tomatoes, so its time in the sun may be short. Another Waititi project may never see daylight at all: his long-gestating Star Wars film. Waititi recently gave Inverse an update and said the movie is “on ice.”

The film was announced in 2020. The public has heard little since then, apart from a 2023 update saying the film was still planned. That now looks unlikely. “I hate to break this to you, but we’re going to actually put it on ice,” Waititi said.

According to Inverse, Waititi asked his publicist whether he could say anything more. The reply was, “If you have to ask, the answer is no.”

“Well, there’s your answer. I don’t even know how to dress it up or make it even vague,” Waititi said. He called the film “very iced” and said he has at least four other movies he is trying to make.

The current state of Star Wars on the big screen

“On ice” doesn’t necessarily mean canceled. Still, it doesn’t sound like Waititi will direct in a galaxy far, far away anytime soon. He did leave a small opening: “Ice ages do come to an end. Who knows?”

Waititi isn’t the only big-name Hollywood talent whose Star Wars movie stalled. Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D. B. Weiss were supposed to make a trilogy, but they left it when they signed a deal with Netflix. The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson was also confirmed to make a trilogy. It never materialized, and he has focused on his Knives Out mystery series instead.

Other Star Wars movies that went nowhere include a project that Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige had been developing. There was also a canceled Ben Solo film from Adam Driver and Steven Soderbergh, and a pitch from David Fincher that never advanced, among others.

Star Wars: Starfighter will put the franchise back in theaters on May 28, 2027. Deadpool & Wolverine director Shawn Levy directs, and Ryan Gosling stars. Disney has several other Star Wars movies in development. Time will tell whether any of them work out or end up on ice like Waititi’s.

Related: Every Star Wars movie and TV show coming in 2027 and beyond

Source: Polygon