Lucasfilm Has Reached The End Of A Franchise-Defining Era
Kathleen Kennedy is calling it a career.
While Hollywood executives used to stay behind the scenes, it’s now common for modern executives to be the face of their respective franchises. We even have terms like Zaslaved, meaning to save a buck by canceling a movie’s release, and the Snyderverse, in reference to the DC universe movies overseen by Zack Snyder.
Since 2012, one woman has been the face of Lucasfilm, ushering Star Wars through the highs and lows of the Disney ownership era. Now, after almost 50 years in the business, she’s retiring. But what does this mean for Star Wars, and who could fill her shoes?
According to Puck, Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy is set to retire by year’s end. Kennedy has helped announce and shepherd basically every major Star Wars project in the Disney era, from the launch of The Mandalorian and the coining of the term Mando-verse to the announcement of the sequel trilogy and a slew of upcoming movies.
Kathleen Kennedy’s exit will come after the premiere of the much-anticipated Andor Season 2.
According to the report, Kennedy originally planned to retire in 2024 before deciding to stick around for one more year. We can only speculate as to why, but it’s worth noting that a 2024 retirement could have been interpreted as a reaction to trolls attacking The Acolyte, something she acknowledged in an interview with The New York Times.
“As a fan myself, I know how frustrating some Star Wars storytelling in the past has been,” she said. “I’ve felt it myself. I stand by my empathy for Star Wars fans. But I want to be clear. Anyone who engages in bigotry, racism or hate speech … I don’t consider a fan.”
2025, however, will see the release of Andor Season 2 and Ahsoka Season 2, while the Star Wars Celebration Japan convention will be held in April. It may be as good a time as any to leave on a high note.
Mandalorian showrunners Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau seem to be Kennedy’s most likely successors.
Kennedy has been a major player in Hollywood for decades. She co-founded Amblin Entertainment with Steven Spielberg and had a long working relationship with George Lucas, with titles like Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Jurassic Park, and the Back to the Future trilogy under her belt. So who could replace her?
The immediate assumption is that she’ll be replaced by Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau, the co-showrunners behind The Mandalorian. Mando and Baby Yoda have been the driving force behind modern Star Wars, and Filoni, in particular, has long seemed like the heir apparent. He developed The Clone Wars with George Lucas, and was recently promoted to Chief Creative Officer, so he’s already an executive. Favreau, meanwhile, has broader franchise experience, directing and acting in multiple Marvel movies while also helming 2026’s The Mandalorian and Grogu.
It’s also possible that an outsider could be brought in to run the business side of things while Filoni and Favreau stick to creative developments. All we know for sure at this point is that, after a dozen years of ushering Star Wars through its most contentious era, Kathleen Kennedy deserves a break.
