"Solo" Underperformance Will Not Slow "Star Wars" Development: Report

The Lucasfilm team are "licking their wounds" and reassessing marketing strategies.

BYTrevor Smith
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Solo: A Star Wars Story was the first of the Star Wars reboot films that failed to meet expectations, and it's inspired conversation about whether Lucasfilm's annual release strategy is built to last. According to sources speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Lucasfilm will not slow the development of it's upcoming Star Wars films, though they are taking notes from the disappointing Solo numbers.

"[T]hey are licking their wounds," claims a source. This process includes rethinking how the movies are made and promoted beyond Star Wars: Episode IX, set to release December 20, 2019. "It doesn’t mean those spinoffs don't happen," a source says, referring to an idea involving Boba Fett, which could be reconfigured. "It just means they’re trying to figure out how to make, and market, them differently."

The Boba Fett spinoff is reportedly being written by Simon Kinberg and James Mangold, withMangold set to direct. However, given the underperformance of Han Solo's origin story, a more minor character like Boba Fett --  though a fan favorite -- may not hold the same appeal Lucasfilm originally imagined, and some retooling may be required. There's also anObi Wan Kenobi spinoff that has been rumored to be in the works, though details are more scarce on the project. 

"In light of the reaction to Last Jedi and the performance of Solo, they are now just going to look at what’s coming in and seeing how good it is, before dating anything," an insider states of Lucasfilm's new approach to releases. "It’s all pretty understandable."


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<b>Features &amp; News Writer</b> <!--BR--> Trevor is a music writer currently based in Montreal. Follow him on <a href="https://twitter.com/trevsmith_" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a>.