Moviefone Editorial

Tag: star wars standalone

  • ‘Star Wars’ Spinoffs Being Put on Hold: Report

    Is “Star Wars” is pressing pause on standalone spinoffs like “Solo” and “Rogue One”?

    Lucasfilm is indeed putting spinoffs on hold, according to a report by Collider, in order to concentrate more on “Episode IX” and their plans for the next trilogy after it. So, that means a halt to the Obi-Wan Kenobi movie that was in development. And unknown is the fate of a Boba Fett spinoff from James Mangold, rumors of which were flying around before “Solo’s” release.

    The slowdown comes on the heels of the disappointing box office returns of “Solo,” which were lower than expected. “Solo” made $84.4 million on opening weekend and has brought in $339.5 million worldwide in four weeks, but that falls short of how “Rogue One” performed during that same time period.

    Of course, to be fair, “Solo” opened in the far busier summer season versus the year-end holidays when the three most recent “Star Wars” movies debuted.

    Still, the standalone spinoffs have had a rocky history in their brief existence. “Rogue One” required extensive reshoots, with Tony Gilroy basically taking over as director from Gareth Edwards. Phil Lord and Christopher Miller were fired in the middle of shooting “Solo,” with Ron Howard taking over.

    With this move, Lucasfilm seems to be focusing on the trilogy shepherded by “Last Jedi” director Rian Johnson and a series of films from “Game of Thrones” showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss.

  • Donald Glover ‘Would Love’ to Make a Lando Movie Someday

    There’s no concrete plan to make a Lando Calrissian “Star Wars” spinoff flick just yet (that honor is reportedly going to Obi-Wan Kenobi next), but that hasn’t stopped “Solo: A Star Wars Story” star Donald Glover from fantasizing about the possibility. In a new interview, the actor revealed that he’d be interested in starring in — and maybe even writing — a film about the space hustler someday, and already has a TV-inspired idea in mind.

    While chatting with Entertainment Weekly about a potential “Lando” movie, Glover said he would definitely be down for such a flick.

    “It would always be fun to be Lando again,” the actor told EW. “I would love to do it again.”

    Part of the appeal, Glover added, was that Lando mostly roams in a separate realm from the Skywalker clan, whose story is “almost like the Bible” at this point.

    “I feel like out here its like, yeah, we’re just like husters and gamblers and space pirates, essentially, so you can do a lot more and have a lot more fun,” the actor explained of the universe explored in “Solo.”

    Also fun? The opportunity for Glover to write his own “Lando: A Star Wars Story” some day. Though Lucasfilm has already made it clear that it has no such flick in the works just yet, the actor mused about the possibility, telling EW that there was a TV character whose essence he’d like to portray.

    “It would be cool to see, like, ‘Frasier in Space’ — like, a high-end guy in space,” Glover explained. “All of these characters are very specific and they have very specific points of view, so it’s always going to be fun to see them traveling around to a planet that is the opposite of what they’re used to.”

    It’s probably going to be a while before any such film materializes, but with Glover and his boundless creativity on board, we have no doubt it will be worth the wait. In the meantime, fans can get their Lando fix for now when “Solo: A Star Wars Story” opens this Friday, May 25.

    [via: Entertainment Weekly]

  • The Latest ‘Star Wars’ Rumor Says the Obi-Wan Spinoff Is Happening Next

    “Star Wars” fans may be experiencing a bit of whiplash this week, thanks to all of those conflicting rumors about the next subject of a standalone flick. Now, a new report suggests that yet another familiar face from a galaxy far, far away is actually the one set to get his own “Star Wars Story.”

    TMZ is reporting that Lucasfilm is currently planning out a film centered on Obi-Wan Kenobi, and already has a plot outline in place. The site says it recently got its hands on a “production bulletin,” which says that the film will be called “Obi-Wan: A Star Wars Story,” with the working title “Joshua Tree” (much like “Solo: A Star Wars Story” used the working title “Red Cup”).

    According to TMZ, this is the story breakdown from the production bulletin:

    Obi-Wan is on Tatooine being an elusive hermit and stuff, but secretly watches over an infant Luke Skywalker, whom he delivered to his uncle, Owen. Tensions between the local farmers and a tribe of Sand People — headed by a ruthless war chief — eventually brings Obi outta hiding … and into Jedi kickass mode.

    The report goes on to say that a London studio is already booked to shoot the film next spring, and director Stephen Daldry — previously reported to be circling the project — now appears to be officially attached. It’s not entirely surprising that Lucasfilm would focus on Obi-Wan, since this film has been rumored to be in development for some time now. Plus, the most recent actor to play the Jedi master, Ewan McGregor, has repeatedly said that he’s interested in reprising the role (which was originated by the late Sir Alec Guinness in Episodes IV-VI).

    What makes this rumor a little hard to swallow, though, is that publicly, Lucasfilm has declared that it wants to continue focusing on Han, with the next “Star Wars Story” film likely following in “Solo”‘s footsteps, and highlighting Han’s relationship with Chewie. Just this week, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy had to walk back claims that Lando (played by Donald Glover in “Solo”) would be the next one getting a standalone.

    Then there’s that plot. According to one Twitter user (a self-declared “Star Wars” expert), at least part of it is lifted straight from the official synopsis of a 2014 novel called “Kenobi: Star Wars Legends.” Sure, “Kenobi” could have been used as source material for this upcoming film, but the wording is so similar that it seems more than a little fishy.

    Whatever the truth is, we don’t expect Lucasfilm/Disney to tip their hand until they’re absolutely ready. We’re going to take this rumor with a large grain of salt for now, and wait for further confirmation from the higher-ups. Stay tuned.

    [via: TMZ, h/t The Playlist]

  • Han Solo ‘Star Wars’ Spinoff Announces Start of Filming With Cheeky Photo

    han solo, han shot first, spinoff, shooting begins, filming beginsThe next “Star Wars” standalone spinoff flick has officially started shooting, with one of the co-directors of the as-yet-untitled Han Solo-centric film revealing the exciting news on Twitter. And while the announcement in and of itself is noteworthy, filmmakers made it even more so by including a winking reference to one of the most famous controversies to emerge from the “Star Wars”-verse.

    Chris Miller, who’s co-directing the feature alongside creative partner Phil Lord (with whom he also co-helmed “The LEGO Movie”), tweeted out the news to followers on Monday, featuring a photo of the marker used to differentiate between various scenes and takes (in this case, the very first take of production). Aside from the marker being inscribed with the film’s hilarious working title (“Red Cup,” a nod to the famous Solo brand drinking vessels), Miller also included the perfect, cheeky caption: “Han First Shot.”

    For the uninitiated, that phrase is a reference to the infamous “Han shot first” controversy that’s embroiled “Star Wars” fandom for the past two decades, ever since creator George Lucas released his special edition versions of the original trilogy. In 1977’s “A New Hope,” Han (Harrison Ford) is having a confrontation in the Mos Eisley cantina with Greedo, who’s looking to collect on a bounty put on the smuggler by Jabba the Hut; as Greedo continues to threaten Solo, he suddenly pulls out his blaster and casually shoots Greedo to death.

    But in the re-released version that hit theaters in 1997, Lucas edited the scene so that Greedo actually fires off a shot at Han first, making Han’s own shot in retaliation/self defense. Longtime fans of the series weren’t fooled, though, and have insisted ever since that Han did indeed shoot at Greedo first, hence Miller’s reference on Monday. The official “Star Wars” Twitter account acknowledged the director’s joke, though it doesn’t look like they’ll be reworking the franchise canon for a second time.

    We look forward to more fun from Miller (and Lord) on Twitter throughout production. The Han Solo movie, starring Alden Ehrenreich as a younger version of the iconic character, is due in theaters on May 25, 2018.

    [via: Chris Miller/Twitter]

  • Joss Whedon Wants to Make a ‘Star Wars’ Spinoff Movie

    Tribeca Talks Directors Series: Joss Whedon With Mark RuffaloAfter the huge undertaking of directing “The Avengers” and its sequel, “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” Joss Whedon may not make another Marvel movie again. But that doesn’t mean the director wouldn’t want to direct another huge franchise film somewhere down the road — and he may be staying in the Disney family.

    In an interview with Collider, Whedon addressed the possibility of signing up for another tentpole flick in the future. While the director admitted that he was initially skeptical about the idea, he’s recently changed his tune, and has a few ideas for huge franchises he could put his stamp on. In addition to showing interest in directing a James Bond movie and perhaps — gasp! — a DC flick, there’s a certain little series that’s recently caught his eye.

    “Do I want to make a ‘Star Wars’ movie? Yeah,” Whedon told Collider. “I was [initially] like, ‘I don’t want to make a “Star Wars” movie. Like, god dammit, why?’ But I saw the trailer for ‘Rogue [One]’ awhile ago and I was like, ‘I want to do that.’ To make a ‘Star Wars’ movie and not be wed to the bigger picture.”

    The director explained to Collider that one of his favorite things about directing the “Avengers” flicks was the personal freedom that Marvel gave him to make the movies he wanted, and he saw another opportunity for that with this new series of “Star Wars” standalones. And adding his unique voice to that universe — or any other existing franchise, for that matter — would be “a fun thing to do, to put yourself in the service of something if you think you can add an interpretation,” he told Collider.

    Disney is definitely keen on making a bunch more spinoffs in the future, so Whedon could certainly lobby for the job. And his existing connection to the company is guaranteed to give him a major in. Now all that remains to be seen is if the two parties can come together on a concept. Stay tuned.

    [via: Collider]

    Photo credit: Getty Images for Tribeca Film Festival