Rumor: Kathleen Kennedy Heading For “Early Retirement” From Star Wars After Kenobi Delays
A new rumor details that Kathleen Kennedy will be heading for “early retirement” following the delay of the Disney Plus Kenobi series.
The rumor comes from YouTube channel Midnight’s Edge.
Midnight’s Edge details the information they received from their source, “The talk around Pinewood Studios is that Kathleen Kennedy is heading out the door for early retirement.”
They continued, “A text message received confirmed Obi-Wan Kenobi’s directors were told they can expect to be dealing with someone new in the near future, possibly within a matter of months.”
Midnight’s Edge added, “The crew and contractors were officially released, meaning the project is cancelled. An official email released all personnel, who will expectedly be working on other projects the next day.”
This isn’t the first rumor concerning Kennedy’s tenure at Lucasfilm. A previous rumor from back in October indicated Kennedy would be departing Lucasfilm following a fifth Indiana Jones film.
Related: Star Wars Rumor: Kathleen Kennedy to Step Down as Lucasfilm President After Indiana Jones
That rumor came from Making Star Wars’ Jason Ward, who indicated that Kennedy would step down from running Lucasfilm, but would remain on board to produce Star Wars films. He also indicated that Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige would take over management of Lucasfilm.
Fan speculation also heavily implied that Kennedy would be departing Lucasfilm back in September 2019 when they announced Kevin Feige would be producing a Star Wars film.
One fan, who also happens to be a reporter, believed the announcement concerning Feige was a “pink slip” for Kennedy. He explained:
“If you are the President of a division of a company, and the CEO takes the president of a more successful division and gives them your resources, personnel, and your IP, and has them answer to someone higher than you in the organization, then I hate to tell you this, but you have been demoted.
This is what happened to Kennedy last night. Her three year contract has two years left, and will expire in 2021.”
Kathleen Kennedy Renews Star Wars Contract for 3 Years
Kathleen Kennedy reportedly signed a three year contract to remain on as president of Lucasfilm back in September 2018. She oversaw the decline of the Star Wars brand including the first ever Star Wars film in Solo: A Star Wars Story lose money.
She gave the green light to Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi, which exposed the cracks and flaws of Abrams’ derivative The Force Awakens. Johnson’s film also ripped out the heart of the franchise by destroying iconic characters like Luke Skywalker. It also completely changed the concept of the Force and somehow broke how starship battles work. The destruction would seemingly be completed with J.J. Abrams’ The Rise of Skywalker that reincarnated characters from the dead and introduced the franchise-killing concept of Force healing.
If this rumor from Midnight’s Edge is true, it’s possible Kennedy might not actually be shown the door until her contract expires. They might have just removed her decision-making privileges. The Kenobi delay seemingly indicates that. According to Ewan McGregor they delayed production of the project for an entire year.
Related: Report: Obi-Wan Kenobi Crew Sent Home – Series On Hold
What do you make of this new rumor? Do you think Kennedy is done at Lucasfilm? Or do you think Lucasfilm renews Kennedy in 2021?
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