Despite some future Star Wars movies, Disney seems to be more focused on incorporating Star Wars shows into its Disney + streaming service. In the first six years of Disney’s Star Wars, four Star Wars movies came out in theaters and a TV show, Star Wars Rebels on Disney XD. But with the success of Mandalorian, Lucasfilm now seems to be entering the series and taking a step back from the films.
At the end of 2020, Star Wars was a big part of Disney Investors Day, where many upcoming projects for the next few years were presented. About a dozen upcoming Star Wars shows have been announced, many of which are about to be released by the end of 2022. However, only three Star Wars movies have been revealed, and the details are incredibly vague.
Of the three films announced, directors Taika Waititi and Kevin Feige were missing titles or other details for their Star Wars movie. And the only person named was Star Wars: Rogue Squadron, which was recently announced as an indefinite suspension, probably due to creative differences between director Patty Jenkins and Lucasfilm. The Rian Johnson trilogy has also not been mentioned for a long time for many years, leading fans to speculate that it has been canceled.
All of this means that two Star Wars movies are currently appearing in pre-production, with release dates believed to be many years away. This Star Wars timeline clearly shows a movement towards Disney + shows, where the movies almost fall apart. This raises the question: is this the best decision to go with the franchise?
No matter how good the Star Wars series is, there is something special about a movie. The story is usually more spectacular, and it’s always time to see a new Star Wars movie in theaters. And while it’s generally more exciting to watch a Star Wars movie with a series of episodes as part of the saga, most fans have also enjoyed both spin-off movies. Many people praise Rogue One: A Star Wars Story for trying something different with its war movie series. The story probably would not have the same effect if it were divided into several parts.
But if you have multi-episode shows, audiences will receive more Star Wars content in general and often each week. The usual season length goes far beyond a single film, allowing viewers to become more attached to the characters. And as last season of The Mandalorian proved, Lucasfilm is more than capable of producing cinematic effects and stories in a 40-minute episode. With The Mandalorian and the latest season 7 of The Clone Wars, much of the most popular Star Wars content has been released since Disney bought it.
Regardless of the future of Star Wars, the best result would be a fair number of shows and movies. But if the programs are to come in the future, most fans will agree that all that matters is to tell a good story worthy of the Star Wars name.
