Ever wonder why it took seven years to get a third Paddington movie?
Turns out, Paddington 2 creators Simon Farnaby and Paul King were busy trying to craft a different type of family film in a galaxy far, far away.
Farnaby revealed to Variety that the pair spent years working on a top-secret Star Wars project for Lucasfilm.
In the end, Lucasfilm executives shelved it for a simple reason; they felt the story focused too much on an original droid and didn't have any franchise staples such as The Force, Jedi, and stormtroopers, etc.
"They were like, we really need it to be a ‘Star Wars’ movie, which is probably why it didn’t get turned into a ‘Star Wars’ movie! But we never really nailed it.," Farnaby told the site.
The project was pitched strictly as live-action. That fits right into King and Farnaby’s sweet spot, combining practical sets with CGI visual effects the same way they did on Paddington and Wonka.
Farnaby went on to disclose that the concept might still get made, just as a standalone feature that doesn't have anything to do with The Force or Jedi.
After King and Farnaby pivoted to direct and write Wonka (2023), work on their original pitch is
"They basically said, it’s not right for ‘Star Wars,’ but do you want to rework it as a sci-fi film? So we’re working on that now."
Up until Farnaby’s chat with Variety, this project was totally off everyone’s radar.
Neither he nor King had ever let slip that they were working with Lucasfilm.
It’s pretty impressive, considering how much press they’ve done over the past decade without the news leaking once.
Following the release of The Mandalorian & Grogu back in May, the next Star Wars theatrical release is Star Wars: Starfighter on May 28, 2027 from director Shawn Levy and starring Ryan Gosling.
Also in development is an Untitled "New Jedi Order" film that focuses on Rey, with Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy attached to direct. It's reportedly set 15 years after the events of The Rise of Skywalker, with Rey attempting to build a new Jedi school.
Beyond those two projects, there were a number of projects previously announced under Kathleen Kennedy that are now in an unknown state, following the ascension of Dave Filoni as the person in charge of Star Wars creative.