What next for 'Star Wars' after 'Rise of Skywalker' grand finale?
LOS ANGELES, United States — "The Rise of Skywalker" dominated movie theaters this weekend. But diminishing box office returns, scathing reviews and a plot that wrapped up the space saga's major story arcs all beg the question — what next for "Star Wars"?
Marketed as a grand finale to the decades-spanning, nine-film "Skywalker Saga," the latest film hauled in $177.4 million domestically on its opening weekend.
While that would be a stratospheric figure for any other film —
Reviews were mainly negative, accusing the movie of falling back on the same
A fear of franchise fatigue has already led Disney boss Bob Iger to signal a slowdown in releases, admitting his previous plan to produce a new "Star Wars" each year was "a little too much, too fast."
"We know that fans will want another film, or another few films, and we'll make them," he said.
"So we're in no rush."
New characters, new worlds
Details of what is in store remain tightly under wraps and are the subject of much speculation.
Currently, no "Star Wars" films appear on Disney's release slate until December 2022, to be followed by further untitled movies in 2024 and 2026.
Doug Chiang, Lucasfilm vice-president and executive creative director, confirmed to AFP he is already working on design ideas for a new "Star Wars" movie.
"Now that the 'Skywalker saga'
Who will oversee the project is less
A separate, planned trilogy from Rian Johnson — director of the divisive "Last Jedi" — remains in development.
But Lucasfilm
"I think it gives us a more open-ended view of storytelling and doesn't lock us into this three-act structure," she told the LA Times.
Kevin Feige, the man behind the extraordinary success of the Marvel superhero films, is set to produce a "Star Wars" film -- but it remains at an early stage of development, she added.
J.J. Abrams, director of "The Rise of Skywalker" and "The Force Awakens", is unlikely to
'Endless set of tales'
If there is an undoubted bright spot on the horizon for "Star Wars", it is the recently launched Disney+ series "The Mandalorian".
The franchise's first live-action TV show has proven a hit, not least
As Disney increasingly focuses on its own streaming platform — a direct rival to Netflix, Amazon and Apple, with more competitors on the way in 2020
Ewan McGregor will return as Obi-Wan Kenobi for one series, while the stars of hit 2016 spin-off "Rogue One" will also receive their own prequel show.
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