Few prospective Star Wars projects have generated as much interest as another Skywalker trilogy. The Rise of Skywalker previously concluded the saga in 2019, but the wider franchise has grown and changed considerably since then thanks to the many Disney+ shows and standalone films. Now it seems the story of the Skywalker lineage isn’t over after all, as MCU Spider-Man trilogy veteran Jon Watts reportedly attached to direct the first movie in a new Skywalker Saga trilogy penned by screenwriter Simon Kinberg (via THR).
It’s an especially exciting pairing, because neither filmmaker is new to Star Wars. Simon Kinberg helped create Star Wars Rebels with Lucasfilm President and CCO Dave Filoni, while Jon Watts co-created Star Wars: Skeleton Crew. Because of this existing connection, it’s now clear that these two Star Wars shows now provide the clearest indication of what Episode X’s prospective creative team can bring to the Skywalker Saga.
Simon Kinberg And Jon Watts Have Both Worked On Star Wars Shows
Simon Kinberg and Jon Watts being attached to the next major Star Wars movie is significant even before considering their previous experience in the galaxy far, far away. Simon Kinberg has worked extensively on Fox's X-Men franchise, writing the likes of The Last Stand, Apocalypse, and Days of Future Past, among others. As for Jon Watts, he directed Tom Holland’s first Spider-Man trilogy, one of the most celebrated series of MCU movies. However, fans don’t need to look outside Star Wars to understand what either filmmaker can do with Lucasfilm’s universe.
Simon Kinberg co-created Star Wars Rebels alongside Dave Filoni and Carrie Beck, executive produced the animated series, and wrote seven episodes, including the feature-length premiere, "Spark of Rebellion." Rebels has since become one of the franchise’s most important entries, with the likes of Ezra Bridger (Taylor Gray), Kanan Jarrus (Freddie Prinze Jr.), and the Ghost crew now appearing in live-action Star Wars shows and movies.
Jon Watts, meanwhile, co-created Star Wars: Skeleton Crew with Christopher Ford, co-wrote the series, and directed two episodes. Its story follows Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers), Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), KB (Kyriana Kratter), and Neel (Robert Timothy Smith), ordinary children thrown into an enormous galactic adventure with Jude Law’s Force-using pirate captain Jod Na Nawood. The series is considerably more family-oriented than many recent Star Wars projects, and has a strong coming-of-age narrative at its core.
That makes Rebels and Skeleton Crew the two most useful projects to revisit before Watts and Kinberg potentially launch the next era of the Skywalker saga. Neither necessarily contains essential Episode X plot information, but they demonstrate how its writer and director previously approached Star Wars.
Jon Watts' Star Wars Movie Likely Won't Require Homework
If Jon Watts’ movie ultimately becomes Episode X, it would be the beginning of a new trilogy. This matters when it comes to the current state of Star Wars. The barrage of Disney+ shows has increasingly required Star Wars stories to intersect. Even the latest theatrical release, The Mandalorian & Grogu, is a direct continuation of Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and Grogu’s streaming adventures. There are few corners of the universe that don’t require previous experience to be fully appreciated. Episode X will likely need to operate differently.
A new Skywalker trilogy is simply too significant to make inaccessible to moviegoers who have not watched every animated and live-action Disney+ series. The Phantom Menace, A New Hope, and The Force Awakens each opened a trilogy by establishing a new status quo, introducing central characters and conflicts, and giving audiences enough information to understand the story and wider galaxy without requiring extensive homework.
Star Wars: Starfighter could reinforce this approach before Episode X even arrives. Shawn Levy’s film is an original standalone adventure set after The Rise of Skywalker, taking place in a previously unexplored period. Despite the extensive lore created during the Disney+ era, Lucasfilm is already returning to theatrical stories designed around new characters rather than requiring viewers to arrive with years of streaming knowledge.
As the beginning of the next major chapter of Star Wars history, Episode X will need to go even further to ensure that no viewer feels alienated. Existing fans will naturally benefit from knowing the Skywalker Saga, but Watts’ previous Star Wars work on Skeleton Crew already demonstrates his ability to introduce newcomers to the galaxy. Episode X needs to do exactly the same, so it’s clearly in safe hands.
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Release Date
2014 - 2018-00-00
Network
Disney XD
Directors
Bosco Ng, Steward Lee, Dave Filoni, Saul Ruiz, Melchior Zwyer, Sergio Paez, Brad Rau, Justin Ridge
Writers
Henry Gilroy, Steven Melching, Matt Michnovetz, Kevin Hopps, Simon Kinberg, Greg Weisman, Christopher L. Yost, Gary Whitta, Brent V. Friedman, Nicole Dubuc, Bill Wolkoff, Charles Murray
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Freddie Prinze Jr.
Kanan Jarrus (voice)
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Taylor Gray
Ezra Bridger (voice)
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English (US) ·