If comments by Disney’s Bob Iger and news about the plot of the new “Star Wars” live-action TV series “The Mandalorian” weren’t enough, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy confirmed it — the long-in-development “Boba Fett” film is dead. Like for real this time.
Kennedy recently confirmed this news while attending a special screening of “Black Panther” (via film critic Erick Weber on Twitter). Not only did she confirm that plans for a “Boba Fett” solo film are completely out of the picture, but the Lucasfilm exec also said that the focus right now is on making “The Mandalorian” the best it can be.
If you’re a “Star Wars” fan and follow the rumors surrounding the massive franchise, you are well aware that the road to a “Boba Fett” solo film has had its share of ups and downs. Back when Disney first purchased Lucasfilm and began charting it’s “Star Wars” future, in addition to the regular Skywalker Saga episodes, some solo films were planned, as part of the “Star Wars Story” banner. Those films included what would become ‘Rogue One,’ ‘Solo,’ and a rumored “Boba Fett” standalone.
However, the first speed bump in the ‘Fett’ development was the firing of Josh Trank from the film. It has long been known that Trank was set to be introduced at the 2015 Star Wars Celebration but was a no-show, leading many to wonder what would happen. This while the world was bracing for the failure of the director’s “Fantastic Four” reboot. Two weeks later, Trank announced he departed the “Star Wars” film to focus on a smaller project. It was only this year that work began on his follow-up “Fonzo.”
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For the next couple years, rumors swirled about the status of “Boba Fett,” as ‘Rogue One’ became a massive hit. Then earlier this year, it was reported that “Logan” filmmaker James Mangold had boarded the project and that filming could begin relatively soon. That’s when ‘Solo’ hit the box office and turned into the biggest bomb in “Star Wars” history. This led to Lucasfilm and Disney deciding to slow down work on standalone “Star Wars” films and focus on new stories led by Rian Johnson and the two creators of “Game of Thrones.”
Sadly (or fortunately, depending on your thoughts about solo “Star Wars” films), that apparently leaves “Boba Fett” with nowhere to go. And with “The Mandalorian” taking much of the character’s thunder, it makes sense that Lucasfilm is moving on from the troubled production.
Kathleen Kennedy just confirmed to me Boba Fett movie is 100% dead, 100% focusing on THE MANDALORIAN #StarWars
— ???????????????? (@ErickWeber) October 26, 2018