Taika Waititi Claims He’s Stuck On The “Middle Part” Of His Star Wars Script

Taika Waititi and director Shawn Levy on the set of 20th Century Studios’ FREE GUY. Photo by Alan Markfield. © 2020 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

Director and actor Taika Waititi recently provided an update on his Star Wars film claiming he’s stuck on the “middle part.”

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 23: Taika Waititi attends the Thor: Love and Thunder World Premiere at the El Capitan Theatre in [Hollywood], California on June 23, 2022. (Photo by Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Disney)

Waititi’s Star Wars film was announced back on May 4, 2020 alongside Leslye Headland’s The Acolyte series. The official Star Wars website noted, “Academy Award® winner Taika Waititi, who recently won Best Adapted Screenplay for Jojo Rabbit and directed the widely-acclaimed first season finale episode of The Mandalorian on Disney+, will direct and co-write a new Star Wars feature film for theatrical release.”

They added, “Joining Waititi on the screenplay will be Academy Award® nominee Krysty Wilson-Cairns (1917, Last Night in Soho), who received a BAFTA Award for Outstanding British Film of the Year on the three-time Oscar-winning film, 1917.”

Taika Waititi on the set of THE MANDALORIAN

RELATED: Thor: Love And Thunder’s Taika Waititi Gives A Brief Update On His Star Wars Film

There hasn’t been much movement in the three years since. Back in June 2022, Waititi even indicated the film not get made after he submits his script. He told The New York Times, “I’m trying to write the ‘Star Wars’ idea at the moment. I’ve got to see how that goes, because once I submit it, that might determine when it gets made or if it gets made, even.”

Waititi added, “I am cool as well to take six months off and just go hang out with my kids.”

(L-R): Greef Karga (Carl Weathers), an Anzellan (Shirley Henderson) with IG-12 (Taika Waititi) and Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) in Lucasfilm’s THE MANDALORIAN, season three, exclusively on Disney+. ©2023 Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM. All Rights Reserved.

RELATED: Taika Waititi Responds To Recent Star Wars Report: “That Rumor’s About Three Years Old”

More recently he indicated the whole film was a rumor despite it being officially announced. He was asked by Deadline, “Speaking of different environments, Taika, there’s also a lot of talk about what you are working on, now it’s writing and perhaps staring in a Star Wars movie …”

Waititi responded, “Yeah, that rumor’s about three years old. All I’ll say is God forbid I make a Star Wars film about people sitting on mountains playing flutes…”

When Deadline’s Dominic Patten informed him, “Well, they kind of went there with the last few Stars Wars movies with Luke Skywalker,” Waititi replied, “Okay, then I won’t do that, for sure.”

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 23: (L-R) Taika Waititi and Kevin Feige, President of Marvel Studios attend the Thor: Love and Thunder World Premiere at the El Capitan Theatre in [Hollywood], California on June 23, 2022. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)

Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy previously told Empire Magazine that the film is still happening, but Kennedy indicated the issue was the third act.

She said, “Taika is working away. He’s just, and he won’t get mad at me for saying this, slow. We’ve got a couple of acts, we need a third.”

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA – JULY 20: (L-R) President of Marvel Studios Kevin Feige, Director Taika Waititi and Natalie Portman of Marvel Studios’ ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ at the San Diego Comic-Con International 2019 Marvel Studios Panel in Hall H on July 20, 2019 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)

Now, speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Waititi indicated he’s struggling with the script, but told the outlet it was the middle and not the third act, “I’ve got a really good idea for it. It’s just as with all films, it’s this middle part. You’re like, ‘What’s going to happen?’ And then you look at all of those films that are so great, you’re like, ‘Well, I guess they can’t meet some smuggler with an alien sidekick.’”

However, he also similarly noted it’s not a top priority, “For the most part, I would like to take a few holidays and go and follow Rita around. Just be her little tour toy boy and hang out with her and just watch her perform and get her a cup of tea backstage.”

(L-R) Taika Waititi as Antwan, Utkarsh Ambudkar as Mouser and Joe Keery as Keys in 20th Century Studios’ FREE GUY. Photo by Alan Markfield. © 2020 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

What do you make of Waititi’s comments and his contradiction of Kennedy? Do you think this film will ever get made?

NEXT: In Seeming Dig At Taika Waititi, ‘Thor’ Star Chris Hemsworth Says He Refuses To Work With Any More “Mad Genius” Directors

Share: 
Mentioned This Article:

More About: