Star Wars: Lucasfilm’s Kathleen Kennedy Trends After Obi-Wan Series Delay

Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy emerged as a trending topic on Twitter Thursday following [...]

By Cameron Bonomolo

Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy emerged as a trending topic on Twitter Thursday following reports the Ewan McGregor-led Obi-Wan Kenobi series has been indefinitely delayed. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the anticipated series has been put on hold — but not cancelled — and its episode count has dropped from six to four episodes. Both McGregor and director Deborah Chow (The Mandalorian) remain attached to the live-action Star Wars series planned for Disney+, but story issues have forced a "retooling" on the series: Lucasfilm is now searching for a replacement for original scribe Hossein Amini, whose story veered too close to The Mandalorian, according to one source close to the production.

Troubles surrounding Obi-Wan kicked up last week when a viral hoax claimed the series had been cancelled at Lucasfilm, but sources close to the production insisted the series was moving forward. Parent company Disney has yet to comment on the pause on production.

"At this point you have to wonder how Kathleen Kennedy holds onto her title," reads a tweet from Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld. "How many productions are going to get shut down on her watch?"

Months after Kennedy fired original Solo: A Star Wars Story directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller, later replacing them with veteran filmmaker Ron Howard on the young Han Solo prequel, Colin Trevorrow was pulled off Star Wars: Episode IX and replaced by returning The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams on what would become The Rise of Skywalker. The franchise had another high-profile exit when Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss departed a planned Star Wars trilogy.

Some dissatisfied fans called for Kennedy's firing ahead of a contract set to expire in 2021. Kennedy inked her three-year extension in late 2018, six years after taking the reins from company founder and franchise creator George Lucas.

Other fans arguing against Kennedy's removal pointed to a lack of planning on the Star Wars sequel trilogy, also overseen by Kennedy, defending the decision to delay Obi-Wan if it means ensuring the series has a cohesive story:

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Photo: Jesse Grant / Getty Images for Disney

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