Disney CEO Bob Iger was silent regarding the future of Star Wars film projects during the latest Disney investor call.
According to a transcript provided by Motley Fool, Iger confirmed Disney will be taking a hiatus from theatrical Star Wars releases. While he did mention that features are in development, he did not provide any specifics whatsoever.
“On the Star Wars front where as I had mentioned in previous calls, we’re taking a bit of a hiatus in terms of the theatrical release. We finished the nine-episode Skywalker saga and we’re developing both television and features.”
Related: Disney CEO Bob Iger: Star Wars Movies Will Go On “Hiatus” After Episode IX
And Iger has mentioned before that Lucasfilm would be taking a hiatus when it comes to theatrical releases. In April 2019, Iger told Bloomberg:
“We have not announced any specific plans for movies thereafter. There are movies in development, but we have not announced them. I think we are going to hit pause, and take some time to reset. Because the Skywalker saga comes to an end with this ninth movie. There will be other Star Wars movies, but again I think we’re going to end up in a period where there will be a bit of hiatus.”
He also told The Hollywood Reporter in September 2018 that he believed Disney was putting out too many Star Wars films too quickly and indicated there would be a slowdown.
“I made the timing decision, and as I look back, I think the mistake that I made — I take the blame — was a little too much, too fast. You can expect some slowdown, but that doesn’t mean we’re not going to make films.”
Related: Disney Announces Plans for New Star Wars Movies Through 2026
However, Disney also announced that three Star Wars film were on their docket with release dates schedule for 2022, 2024, and 2026. Iger made no mention of these films in the investor call, and in fact his silence indicates they might be delayed or even scrapped.
While Iger indicated that Star Wars films will go on hiatus, he did reveal that Disney and Lucasfilm’s short term plans are focused on The Mandalorian and possible spin-off series.
“The priority in the next few years is television with The Mandalorian Season 2 coming in October and then more coming from The Mandalorian thereafter, including the possibility of infusing it with more characters and the possibility of taking those characters in their own direction in terms of series.”
Iger also touched on the upcoming Rogue One prequel series and the troubled Kenobi series:
“And then we have a prequel to Rogue One and Kenobi series also in development.”
Related: Star Wars Artist Jordan Maison Reports Kenobi Series Being Repurposed Back Into a Movie
He would reiterate Disney’s short-term vision for Star Wars is with TV on Disney Plus.
“So the priority for Star Wars in the short-term is going to be, I’ll call it television for Disney+ and then we will have more to say about development of theatrical soon after that.”
Iger concluded indicating he was confident about Star Wars and Lucasfilm moving forward and even hinted that there might be Star Wars content coming to Hulu in the future.
“We are confident that the studio is going to continue to be a strong driver of operating income for the company, both on the movie front, but also as a great supplier of product both original and secondary market for Disney+ and for Hulu, by the way.”
While Iger might be confident, these short-term plans for Star Wars and Lucasfilm have long-time fans rather nervous especially after the complete and utter disaster of the Disney Star Wars sequels that gutted the heart and soul of the franchise over and over again.
Related: 5 Reasons The Last Jedi Was The Worst Star Wars Movie Ever
YouTubers Kneon and Geeky Sparkles of Clownfish TV commented on Disney’s switch from film to TV.
Kneon states, “It’s really sad to see Star Wars relegated to direct to TV. Everything Star Wars now is going to be on par with the Ewoks movie.” He added, “I’m just saying that’s where it is right now and we have the Sequel Trilogy to blame for that. The Sequel Trilogy just completely has soured a lot of people on Star Wars. I think the damage is irreparable. The Mandalorian started to win people back, but how long before they screw that up?”
What do you make of Iger’s comments about the future of Star Wars? Are you as confident as Iger claims to be about the future? What do you make of the idea of Disney doubling down on The Mandalorian?