Taika Waititimay be done working with the God of Thunder for the time being, but the director is still aiming to bring his talents to a galaxy far, far away. Following an evening of news that saw two bigStar Warsprojects canned, fans can take heart that theThor: Ragnarokdirector is still hard at work on hisownStar Warsproject- and not just as director.
Varietyreports that, unlike the shelved projects fromPatty JenkinsandKevin Feige, Waititi continues to work on his ownStar Warsfeature and is aiming to appear in front of the camera in a prominent role, similar to his performance as an imaginary Adolf Hitler in his Oscar-winning filmJojo Rabbitfrom 2019. Waititi is also no stranger toStar Wars, having been behind the camera onThe MandalorianforJon FavreauandDave Filoni, as well as lending his voice to the robotic character IG-11, who most recently featured in the Season 3 premiere last week.
Waititi previously toldTotal Filmthat he doesn’t want to direct a film with pre-existing characters and plot lines.
“Look, I think for the Star Wars universe to expand, it has to expand. I don’t think that I’m any use in the Star Wars universe making a film where everyone’s like, ‘Oh great, well that’s the blueprints to the Millennium Falcon, ah that’s Chewbacca’s grandmother.’ That all stands alone, that’s great, though I would like to take something new and create some new characters and just expand the world, otherwise it feels like it’s a very small story.”
RELATED:‘Star Wars’: Taika Waititi Plans to Leave Pre-Existing Characters Behind
The ‘Star Wars’ Franchise Is Headed Back to the Big Screen Soon
TheStar Warsfranchise has prioritised television in the recent past, with shows likeThe Mandalorian,The Book of Boba Fett, as well as upcoming series likeThe Acolyteand limited series in the forms ofObi-Wan Kenobi.Despite this, Lucasfilm presidentKathleen Kennedyhas previously insisted that feature films was still the number one aim for the company. “As we leave the saga, we have all this great, exciting work happening on the television side that informs so much about where we’re going. We want to be very intentional about that,” Kennedy shared, adding that they have great talent working on the nextStar Warsfilm to ensure it comes out with a “bang.”
Star Wars Celebration, the annual convention for the franchise, takes place in London over the weekend of April 7. Lucasfilm is expected to announce grand plans for the future ofStar Warson the big screen at the event, as well as expected updates for at least four Disney+ series, including the final season of the critically adoredAndor.
In the meantime, check out Waititi’s interview with Collider when he reveals his favoriteStar Warstoys below:
