Why You Probably Shouldn't Get Too Excited About That Star Wars: Episode X News, At Least Not Yet

As somebody who was born two months after Star Wars (the movie we know now as A New Hope) came out, and who counts The Return of the Jedi as his earliest movie theater memory, I have always loved Star Wars, and I expect that, to one degree or another, I always will. I’m always interested in what the franchise has going on, but I admit that more recently I’ve been far less excited by Star Wars, not because I’m not interested in what it promises, but because I’m tired of getting promises that don’t deliver.

The latest news (which, it should be made clear, has not been confirmed by Disney or Lucasfilm) is that director Jon Watts has been tapped to direct the movie that will be Star Wars: Episode X, the first film of a new trilogy being written by Simon Kinberg. This has seemingly sparked a significant debate already, between those who feel Watts made three very successful and well-regarded Spider-Man movies and a solid Star Wars TV series, and thus is probably a good choice, and those who feel that Watts made three very successful and well-regarded Spider-Man movies and a solid Star Wars TV series, and thus is clearly a terrible choice.

I can’t get worked up either way. Mostly because I’m far from convinced this movie will ever happen. I’ve been burned before.

Announcing a Star Wars Movie Does Not Mean We're Getting a Star Wars Movie

To be clear, I have no reason to discount the reporting from The Hollywood Reporter and others that Watts has been signed, or at the very least offered, Star Wars: Episode X. I’m sure that’s happened. The problem is that Star Wars under Disney has seen far more movies announced than have ever seen the light of day.

Remember when David Benioff and D.B. Weiss of Game of Thrones were going to produce a Star Wars trilogy? Remember when Rian Johnson was? Those movies were given a great deal of fanfare only to be quietly dropped before anything ever happened. And they are far from the only ones.

Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins was supposed to be making a Rogue Squadron movie. That movie vanished from any discussion before being surprisingly resurrected. Though it’s been another two years of radio silence since then, so who knows?

Taika Waititi was supposed to write a Star Wars movie. Kevin Feige was supposed to produce one. Feige’s project is officially in the “not happening” category. Waititi’s is, if it’s not dead, clearly not a priority for anybody involved.

At Star Wars Celebration back in 2023, Lucasfilm put three big movie projects literally center stage. One was basically the Star Wars version of The Avengers that would bring the various Disney+ series together on the big screen; one was a Dawn of the Jedi movie from James Mangold; and the third was a new Rey-centered film starring Daisy Ridley to be directed by Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy.

Episode X (Probably) Means Another Star Wars Movie is Dead

Three years later, not only have we heard basically nothing about these movies, but one of them, the Rey movie, is likely all but dead, assuming that Episode X moves forward. Since the expectation is that Rey’s story will continue in this new trilogy, it seems unlikely we'll get a new trilogy and also that other movie. Add it to the list of movies that will never happen.

Those films are all dead, but Star Wars has returned to the big screen. This year we got The Mandalorian and Grogu, which was enjoyable, and Star Wars: Starfighter is set for next year. While this might lead one to believe that other Star Wars movies are now more possible, I’m not so sure. 

Back in 2018, Solo: A Star Wars Story was released, and the movie failed to impress at the box office. While there are a number of potential reasons for that, the one that Lucasfilm seemingly took from it (proving that Hollywood executives will always learn the wrong lesson) is that “people must not like Star Wars spinoffs.” The entire Star Wars Story subseries was killed off.

Will Episode X Really be the Next Star Wars Project?

But next year we’re going to get Star Wars: Starfighter. The buzz for the film is already quite strong. People seem more excited for it than they were about The Mandalorian movie, even with it still months away. By all accounts, the story has literally zero to do with anybody named Skywalker.

So what happens if the movie is a smashing success? What happens if it turns out that people love to see Star Wars movies not directly connected to the Skywalker Saga? History has shown us that Lucasfilm will begin to significantly invest in more standalone stories, and will try to move on them as quickly as possible. And if that happens, what will it mean for Episode X? There's a good chance the movie might get pushed back for other projects, and if that happens, we may not get the movie that's currently being discussed at all.

To be sure, I have no doubt that Star Wars: Episodes X - XII  will exist one day. Of course they will. But I’m far less certain that the version of them we get will be the one that’s currently being worked on. If these movies actually do move forward, if production begins, then I’ll start to care about whether or not they’ll be any good. Until then, I won't be wasting much energy on this.