Star Wars Director James Mangold Details Why He Wanted to Explore the Dawn of the Jedi

Around the time of the release of Solo: A Star Wars Story, Logan director James Mangold was rumored to be developing a project involving Boba Fett, and while that project never came to fruition, Mangold was announced earlier this year as developing a film for the galaxy far, far away. While two other announced films will tie up loose ends for various corners of the franchise, Mangold confirmed that part of what made the project so appealing is that, by going so far back into the history of the timeline, he wouldn’t have to worry about the ways in which a story would have to connect to other projects. James Mangold’s film doesn’t have a confirmed release date.

“Well, I’ve talked to [Lucasfilm] before and even worked a bit before on other projects,” Mangold shared with io9. “And I’m always interested in what’s going on there and have friends who work on other Star Wars projects. But I understood that much of what they were doing was kind of continuing the saga forward.”

Announced alongside Mangold’s film, another project was announced that would explore Rey Skywalker’s development of a New Jedi Order while another film would be a culmination of TV series like The Mandalorian and Star Wars: Ahsoka, taking place during the development of The New Republic.

“So when I mentioned to Kathy [Kennedy, Lucasfilm president] the idea that I had about going backward — really far backward — I was surprised that it excited her and the other wonderful people she works with at Lucasfilm,” he added. “For me, it’s about, I want to be part of the saga, but I also don’t want to be holding so much lore in the air that you can hardly tell a story. And what I really wanted to do, what I told her, was just can we make a kind of the Ten Commandments of the Force, you know? A kind of origin story of how the Force came to be known, understood, wielded, and harnessed.”

It’s currently unknown when Mangold’s film could be moving forward, though Lucasfilm has two confirmed release dates for Star Wars films in 2026, with it being possible that his movie could take either of these release dates.

Stay tuned for updates on James Mangold’s Star Wars movie.

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