The film, titled Star Wars: Starfighter, is set to be released on May 28, 2027, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the original 1977 Star Wars movie, which was later officially retitled Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope. This project was unveiled at this year’s Star Wars Celebration in Chiba, Japan. Sean Levy, known for directing Deadpool & Wolverine and Free Guy, will direct the film, with Ryan Gosling as the lead actor.
Although details are sparse, a presentation by Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy and chief creative officer Dave Filoni shared that Starfighter is set to begin production in fall 2025. The story will be set approximately five years after the events of 2019’s Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker, the concluding chapter of George Lucas’s original nine-film saga. According to a press release, it will feature “an entirely new adventure with all-new characters set in a previously unexplored time period.”
This indicates that the movie will not be linked to the 2001 game Star Wars: Starfighter, which is a flight simulation game set just before the Battle of Naboo during the events of Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace.
The decision for Star Wars to move beyond the Skywalker saga is likely to spark debate among fans, similar to other franchise projects that diverged from the characters of the original trilogy. However, choosing to advance the timeline instead of exploring different facets of the nine-film universe through prequels and side stories may offer Levy and his team a level of creative freedom uncommon in the Star Wars franchise.
Additionally, the accelerated development timeline suggests that Starfighter has a strong chance of coming to fruition, unlike previous projects that were often announced prematurely before substantial story development. We’ll provide further updates as Lucasfilm releases more information about the project.
