It’s been 16 months since Lucasfilm last gave a major update on their upcoming Star Wars slate but that’s all about to change when the studio takes part in D23’s Disney Entertainment Showcase. Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy will get a portion of the two-hour panel to share the latest news on Star Wars streaming and theatrical slates. Before she takes the stage, let’s look at what she might bring with her.
Disney Entertainment Showcase (Friday-7 PM PDT/10 PM EDT)
At least the next two Star Wars releases for Lucasfilm will be streaming series but there’s plenty going on with the theatrical slate as well. Expect a little bit of news about the schedule for both…and probably a surprise or two.
Skeleton Crew
With a large display on the convention floor causing some buzz during D23’s media preview night, Skeleton Crew will be front and center in Kennedy’s presentation. Expect Jude Law and the young leads to either be present or have some pre-recorded footage and for a teaser trailer for the series to be shown and then released online. Skeleton Crew hits D+ on December 3rd and after the very muted response to The Acolyte, Lucasfilm needs to start building some momentum behind Jon Watts‘ Goonies-esque space adventure.
Andor, Season 2
Once on track to stream in 2024, the second season of Andor fell victim to the Hollywood work stoppages of 2023 and was moved off of Disney’s 2024 slate. Production on the series has wrapped, however, and given that some footage was shown to the crowd in attendance at Star Wars Celebration 2023, it’s likely Kennedy will have something a little more official to show at D23. Additionally, since Season 2 of Andor is likely the next Star Wars streaming series on the schedule, a release date isn’t out of the realm of possibilities.
Streaming Series in Development
Despite Bob Iger‘s mandate to reduce content, Lucasfilm is still going to churn out Star Wars content on Disney Plus and right now, very little is known about what’s next. Dave Filoni has been hard at work on the scripts for Season 2 of Ahsoka but he also has a film on his plate which means another season of the Rosario Dawson-led New Republic era series may not be quite ready to go. Announcing the studio’s next live-action series, even if only by naming it might generate some buzz. It’s possible, maybe even likely, that a third installment of the studio’s Tales series might be announced but there’s still a large hole in their animated slate now that The Bad Batch has completed its three-season mission. On that note, an announcement about the studio’s next big animated series seems possible.
Theatrical Slate
Production on Jon Favreau‘s The Mandalorian & Grogu kicks off soon which means an update on the project is about the surest thing on this list next to the Skeleton Crew teaser. Some concept art, a title treatment and some cast announcements would generate plenty of excitement both in person and online. Kennedy could also provide updates on the studio’s other three upcoming films. Title treatments for any or all of them would be great and with Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy‘s New Jedi Order era film looking like it’s on track for a December 18, 2026 release, cameras could actually roll before the end of the year if not early next year. Updates on anything beyond that (Filoni’s New Republic era crossover film or James Mangold’s Dawn of the Jedi era film) would be a surprise for sure but a welcome one.
