The entertainment landscape has changed a lot since the debut of Star Wars in 1977. Now, the creative head of Lucasfilm talks on how the franchise is adapting to the new media world.
The Future of ‘Star Wars’ in Theaters and at Home
As Star Wars prepares to return to movie theaters with The Mandalorian and Grogu, Lucasfilm Chief Creative Officer Dave Filoni has addressed how the franchise will continue to balance theatrical releases with Disney+ storytelling.
In a new interview with Collider, Filoni discussed the future of Star Wars projects and indicated that Lucasfilm is not moving away from Disney+ entirely, even as the franchise reestablishes itself on the big screen.
When asked about the annual output of Star Wars projects in any format – shows, movies, and beyond – Filoni emphasized his approach to new Star Wars stories is grounded in the core storytelling first and foremost, with concerns about production format coming second:
“For me right now, rather than dealing with hard numbers like that, I’m just looking at the stories and the potential and planning what I’d like to do. I believe in having an overarching idea and then saying, ‘Okay, it’s this many of that, and then we can have that.’ There are certain things that have been in motion already that, obviously, I want to continue. Jon (Favreau) and I have had a great partnership for many years now, telling stories. So, I look at the stories that I’m kind of planning and architecting, and I look at other creative talents that bring us, also, great stories, and I just try to find a way to make them all work.”
The comments come as The Mandalorian and Grogu is set to open in theaters on May 22, 2026. The film continues the story of Din Djarin and Grogu after three seasons of The Mandalorian on Disney+, and represents the first new theatrical Star Wars installment since Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker in 2019.
With the series’ transition from streaming to the big screen, The Mandalorian and Grogu marks Lucasfilm’s first true experiment in blending its streaming content with the more traditional, wide-release theatrical storytelling.
Filoni has been a central creative figure in the franchise’s modern era, helping guide many animated projects such as Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels, and beyond, while also playing a major role in the Disney+ live-action slate together with Jon Favreau and other high-profile directors.
The new film release follows the recent series finale to Maul – Shadow Lord, another animated project Filoni worked closely on, and one of Star Wars’ most highly rated productions to date. A second season was confirmed to be in production prior to the first season’s premiere, signalling a high degree of internal confidence in the project.
Filoni closed the interview noting the variety of theatrical and streaming projects already underway at Lucasfilm, including the next season of Ahsoka, a character and series Filoni is most closely associated with, and Starfighter, the next theatrical Star Wars release.
Filoni shared his optimism for the future, adding:
“There’s so much exciting stuff coming for Star Wars fans. But I have to say, I said this earlier, fans have known me now for 20 years and that I’ve worked with and told Star Wars stories, so I think they have a good idea of what to expect. I’ve so far really enjoyed collaborating with everybody, and we are well on our way. The future’s in motion now, so it’s exciting.”
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