Taika Waititi is a busy man, and he’s currently promoting the release of his latest film, Thor: Love and Thunder, which releases in the United States on July 8.
He’s also directing the next Star Wars theatrical film, but we don’t know much about that yet. What Waititi did disclose recently, though, is that it won’t begin filming this year.
“Not this year,” he told The Wrap. “I’m going to be in New Zealand from August until the end of the year with ‘Our Flag Means Death’ and ‘Time Bandits’ and during that time I will still be writing. I’m still trying to figure out what the story is.”
Based on that, it sounds like there are primarily two factors in this film not happening quite yet: first, he’s just really busy with other projects, and second, he’s still trying to nail down the story. It’s been quite a process, it sounds like, given that he began writing it in the summer of 2020 and then in the fall of 2021 said that he has a story that “feels very me.” But as is the case in screenwriting, these things take time to iron out and get just right, and Star Wars fans should absolutely want the patience needed to make sure it happens – especially with such a proven and respected filmmaker like Waititi.
So more notable, perhaps, is that if the movie doesn’t begin shooting this year it’s looking extremely unlikely that it will make the Christmas 2023 release window that Disney has kept on the schedule for Star Wars. Lucasfilm has been especially quiet on that front, however, and even when Kathy Kennedy confirmed that Waititi’s film was next up she avoided giving a release time frame. So I think we’re likely looking at another year without a Star Wars theatrical release, unless something changes. Thankfully, however, 2023 will be another massive year for Star Wars content anyway, with the release of tons of shows on Disney+. I’m anxious to get Star Wars movies back – because no matter how great the streaming platform is Star Wars still belongs on the big screen – but it’s important to have the patience to make sure it’s done right. That patience is far easier when we’re still getting brand new content all the time, which shows no end in sight.
Star Wars Thoughts 