David Fincher’s Lost Star Wars Movie Would Have Extended the Sequel Trilogy

The Hollywood information game is cutthroat. Every reporter wants to be the first person to post the big story, whether it’s casting news or a director’s passion project finally getting the greenlight. But the stakes are higher when there’s a major IP involved. The competition this week has been especially fierce after Adam Driver revealed that he and Steven Soderbergh pitched a Star Wars movie to Lucasfilm called The Hunt for Ben Solo, which would’ve taken place after Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. According to Soderbergh, the movie was nearing the finish line when Disney pulled the plug, citing issues with the project’s premise.

Soderbergh’s situation isn’t unique, though. There have been plenty of directors who got the rug pulled out from under them while working on a Star Wars movie. All the news about Soderbergh has even added a new name to the impressive list, David Fincher, who was one of the names Lucasfilm was considering to helm Episode VII. An initial report claimed that Fincher had been interested in making a movie post-The Rise of Skywalker, just like Soderbergh, but another version of events is now making the rounds.

The Playlist reports that Fincher called Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy about making a movie set between Star Wars: The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker. Since the idea never got past the concept phase, both parties moved on without any fuss. However, it’s difficult not to speculate about what Fincher’s idea could’ve been and whether it would’ve changed the outlook for the final entry in the sequel trilogy.

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The one thing everyone can agree on is that the sequels lack a clear vision. Every movie has a different tone, making it hard to understand the plot’s direction and character motivations. The situation reaches its low point in The Rise of Skywalker, which retcons just about every choice The Last Jedi made in an attempt to appease detractors. But maybe if there had been a movie between the controversial Episode VIII and the much-maligned Episode IX, some of Rian Johnson’s decisions would’ve gone down smoother.

A concept that sticks out when discussing another movie set in the sequel trilogy is a Snoke prequel/Kylo Ren movie. The sequels fail to do justice to Snoke, killing him off and replacing him with Palpatine at the last second. A movie that explores his backstory and focuses on Kylo Ren in the present, struggling to gain respect as the new Supreme Leader of the First Order, sets the stage for a power struggle in Episode IX that renders the return of the Dark Lord of the Sith unnecessary.

Of course, Fincher’s original idea may have had nothing to do with the sequels’ main plot, as the director is known for his unique concepts. It’s possible he had his eye on a character like Captain Phasma or Poe Dameron, who were major players but didn’t get as much shine as Kylo or Rey. Whatever the case, it’s not good to harp too much on the past, and that’s all that Fincher’s movie is: a relic from a bygone era.

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