After 14 years of teaching star wars After a period of ups and downs, Kathleen Kennedy is stepping down as president of Lucasfilm. Her departure, effective this week, was long expected but still marks a seismic shift for one of Hollywood’s biggest brands.

Kennedy had already spent decades working on films such as: indiana jones and E.T. When he joined Lucasfilm in 2012 and took on the role of co-chairman alongside Star Wars Creator George Lucas. She was promoted to sole head of the company just months after Disney paid $4 billion for the brand and Lucas exited.

Kennedy won’t be heading far from the galaxy anytime soon. As part of her departure, she will continue to serve as a producer on Lucasfilm’s next two films. The Mandalorian and GroguMay 22, and 2027 Star Wars: Starfighter. She plans to pursue other projects outside of Lucasfilm as an independent producer.

As a result of her influence, Vice President and Chief Creative Officer Dave Filoni was promoted to Lucasfilm’s President and Chief Creative Officer, overseeing the company’s creative direction. Lynwen Brennan, General Manager and President of Lucasfilm, will be responsible for the business side as co-president of Lucasfilm. Separating creative and business operations is a common strategy at Disney, with Pixar run by Pete Docter and Jim Morris and Walt Disney Animation overseen by Jared Bush and Clark Spencer.

Mr. Filoni and Mr. Brennan will report directly to Alan Bergman, co-chairman of Disney Entertainment.

“It has been a true honor to work with the extraordinary talent at Lucasfilm for more than a decade,” Kennedy said in a statement. “Their creativity and dedication are an inspiration, and I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished together. We’re excited to continue developing film and television with both long-time collaborators and fresh voices who represent the future of storytelling.”

Kennedy’s departure ends one era of Star Wars and begins a new one, but Filoni and Brennan’s promotions raise many questions, the answers of which are still largely unknown. One thing is for sure: After a period of relative inactivity, with Kennedy’s successor in place, Lucasfilm could be on the brink of rapid development under new leadership.

Under Lucas’ tutelage, Filoni grew up in the world of animation, directing popular series such as: clone wars before teaming up with Jon Favreau on live-action shows like the mandalorian and Ahosca. Mr. Brennan joined Lucasfilm in 1999 and was promoted to president of Industrial Light & Magic, assuming his current role in 2015, overseeing all business operations for the company.

Kennedy was a veteran producer who received eight Best Picture Oscar nominations for titles such as; sixth sense and lincoln When she took over Lucasfilm and quickly moved into a new era, star wars movie. She asked J.J. Abrams to direct. Star Wars: The Force Awakensthe $2 billion box office hit that started a new trilogy in 2015. star wars Features since 2005 Revenge of the Sith And with a combination of nostalgia and new characters, it met a moment of pent-up demand. It grossed $936.6 million, making it the highest-grossing film in domestic box office history. More films were produced each year, including grossing $1 billion at the box office. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the last jedi ($1.33 billion), Solo: A Star Wars Story ($392.9 million) and rise of skywalker ($1 billion).

It hasn’t always been smooth sailing. Kennedy fired filmmakers Phil Lord and Chris Miller as film directors. soloand replaced them with Ron Howard midway through production. This movie was the first star wars A movie that loses money when released in theaters. During the production of rogue oneshe took director Gareth Edwards aside and brought in Tony Gilroy to overhaul the film. And while the move spawned a slew of sky-falling stories, it proved to be a wise one as the film became a major critical and financial hit, later leading to Gilroy’s acclaimed and Emmy Award-winning prequel series on Disney+. Andor.

Continue rise of skywalkerit received mixed reactions, Disney said star wars CEO Bob Iger acknowledged that the company made too many movies too quickly. Over the past decade, Lucasfilm has game of thrones Creators David Benioff and DB Weiss, the last jedi Film directors Rian Johnson and Taika Waititi. The movie starring Daisy Ridley has been in development since it was announced in 2023.

Two films are currently in production. The Mandalorian and Grogu Arrival May 22nd, Shawn Revis Star Wars: Starfighter The date is May 28, 2027.

While the movie side of “Star Wars” subsequently slumped, rise of skywalkerKennedy’s decision to bring Favreau on board to create and launch the first live-action Star Wars TV series turned out to be more of a victory than anyone expected. the mandalorian Bringing Baby Yoda into popular culture, the first season not only restored Star Wars’ golden status, but also became the flagship show for Disney+, which launched in late 2019.

However, subsequent series had mixed results, one of which was the 2024 series. acolytewas rejected outright by certain factions of the sometimes disrespectful fanbase. Andoron the other end of the spectrum, showed that Star Wars could be used to tell stories with political themes. The film became a showcase for the actors and closed with five Emmy Awards and 22 nominations. whole, star wars The series under Kennedy earned 85 Emmy Award nominations. The second season will start soon Ahosca and animated Maul: King of Shadows series.

Lucasfilm has also been working on reviving the Ron Howard movies in recent years. willow series on Disney+, and the fifth and final installment. indiana jones However, neither could find the audience they expected.

New leaders come with their own questions. Filoni is known for his intimate and esoteric knowledge of the franchise, which served him well in animation, but less so in live-action. season 3 of the mandalorian and season 1 Ahsoka It dealt with the complex aspects of clan conflict and Jedi witches, but was probably too in the weeds for general audiences. He was also scheduled to make his live-action feature directorial debut with a film combining characters from these series, but that film was postponed and Favreau’s work was postponed. The Mandalorian and Grogu It opened this spring.

Observers say that under Mr. Filoni and Mr. Brennan, the franchise is likely to continue many of the practices and priorities set under Kennedy. After all, both have been with Lucasfilm for many years and are part of the organization.

Some have noted that the company pulled back from announcing projects, both features and television, last year as Mr. Kennedy’s resignation was negotiated and a search for his replacement was underway. No matter how you look at it, the company was running idle. These sources say the company can now move full steam ahead to recapture the excitement and creativity of a more civilized era.

On Thursday, Disney executives saw off Kennedy, with CEO Bob Iger reminiscing. “When we acquired Lucasfilm more than a decade ago, we knew we were bringing not only one of the most beloved and enduring storytelling worlds ever created to the Disney family, but also a team of extraordinary talent led by visionary filmmakers hand-picked by George Lucas himself.”

Bergman added: “Kathleen Kennedy has been a huge influence in the industry for 50 years, and we are privileged to have her at Disney, where she led Lucasfilm for nearly 14 of those films.”