Ava DuVernay Not Interested in Directing Star Wars Movie

With news that Lucasfilm has plans to make many, many, many more Star Wars films, some are clamoring for a woman to direct one of the upcoming installments.

And though Ava DuVernay‘s name has been mentioned frequently, the director of A Wrinkle in Time recently admitted that she has no desire to helm one of the projects.

DuVernay exploded onto the scene with Selma, about Martin Luther King’s famous march in 1965. And now we’re just days away from the release of her biggest film yet.

A Wrinkle in Time is a big-budget adaptation of the classic novel by Madeleine L’Engle. DuVernay teamed with Disney for their second attempt to bring the novel to life after the 2003 TV movie.

It remains to be seen what Star Wars project comes next; Solo: A Star Wars Story is two months away from its theatrical premiere, and Star Wars: Episode IX will follow in December, 2019.

After that, it’s anyone’s guess. Rian Johnson was announced to be tackling his own trilogy of films after his success with Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Then the Game of Thrones showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff were announced to be tackling their own series of films. And there are also rumors of a script being written by X-Men: Dark Phoenix director Simon Kinberg, as well as an Obi-Wan Kenobi film being in the works.

Based on how DuVernay tackled the sci-fi/fantasy story, she seems more than capable of handling a production as massive as Star Wars. It’s a shame that she has no interest in doing so. While the film is getting mixed reviews, the approach to the characters seems to be praised across the board, and Star Wars films are more about character dynamics than the operatic plots.

While she might not be interesting in a galaxy far, far away, DuVernay might be persuaded to tackle a superhero film, especially if it had to do with Jack Kirby’s New Gods.

In December last year, she was answering fan questions on Twitter when she revealed her favorite superhero was Big Barda, who is currently playing a prominent role in DC Comics’ Mister Miracle.

A New Gods movie might be a difficult sell to audiences, but based on DC Films’ current process of “let’s develop EVERYTHING,” it might not be such a bad idea.

A Wrinkle in Time premieres in theaters this Friday, March 9th.