There’s no truth to the rumors thatKathleen Kennedyis being replaced as the head of Lucasfilm, Disney CEOBob Chapekassured shareholders on an investor’s call on Tuesday. Chapek was asked rather bluntly if Kennedy was being replaced byDave FiloniorJon Favreau– both of whom have been building out the Disney+Star Warsrealm with shows likeThe Mandalorianand the upcomingThe Book of Boba Fett. Taken aback, Chapek responded:
“We’ve been absolutely thrilled that we can have the kind of talent like Kathy Kennedy to direct Lucasfilm… We look forward to having Kathleen Kennedy running the Lucasfilm organization for many years to come.”
Rumors have been swirling about Kennedy being replaced for years, but it has largely just been some wishful thinking on the part of disgruntled fans.George Lucaschose Kennedy as his successor when he sold Lucasfilm to Disney, and she oversaw the expansion of theStar Warsuniverse with new Skywalker Saga films, spinoffs, and TV shows. Things got off to a pretty great start withStar Wars: The Force Awakens, and the first spinoffRogue One: A Star Wars Storywas a huge box office success, but theForce AwakenssequelStar Wars: The Last Jedirubbed some fans the wrong way (despite the fact thatit’s a brilliant film).
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The divided fan reaction toThe Last Jediwas exacerbated by the accelerated release ofSolo: A Star Wars Story, which became the lowest-grossingStar Warsmovie to date by a wide margin, and which suffered its own production problems when directorsPhil LordandChris Millerwere replaced during film byRon Howard.
The rumors of Kennedy’s seat being in jeopardy even extended to Marvel Studios headKevin Feige, and we asked Feige directly earlier this year if he was involved in upcomingStar Warsmovies beyond the one he’s production, and he flatly said no.
Chapek’s affirmation of Kennedy’s position should hopefully put those rumors to rest, and all in all Kennedy has been successful at relaunching one of the biggest franchises in the world while also steering its expansion into the live-action TV realm.
