We learned that Deadpool and Wolverine director Shawn Levy's mysterious Star Wars movie, which is set to star Ryan Gosling, was officially titled Star Wars: Starfighter during Star Wars Celebration Japan last week, with a release date of May 28, 2027 also announced.
“The reality is that this script is just so good. It has such a great story with great and original characters,” said Gosling from the stage. “It’s filled with so much heart and adventure, and there just really is not a more perfect filmmaker for this particular story than Shawn.”
“This is a standalone. It’s not a prequel, not sequel. It’s a new adventure. It’s set in a period of time that we haven’t seen explored yet,” added Levy.
Though no specific story details were disclosed during the presentation, we now have a little more to go on thanks to insider Daniel Richtman, who also reveals the names of several major Hollywood actors who have turned down key roles in the movie.
"Star Wars: Starfighter follows a 15-year-old boy on a mission with his uncle, played by Ryan Gosling. They're being pursued by a duo of villains—one male, one female. Jesse Plemons and Jodie Comer were initially offered the villain roles but both declined. Mikey Madison was later approached for the female villain but also passed. Another key role is the boy’s mother (possibly Gosling’s sister or sister-in-law, though it's unclear). Sarah Snook was offered the part but turned it down. Greta Lee was considered for another female role as a cantina owner the leads encounter on their mission, but she too declined."
We've heard some of these names before, but it is interesting that a few of the actors mentioned declined some of the same roles. Perhaps the script isn't quite up to scratch?
The movie will reportedly "have a significantly smaller budget" than the previous Disney-era films, and is described as "a more contained" story. Levy has been developing the script with Jonathan Tropper (This Is Where I Leave You, The Adam Project) since 2022, and is also set to produce via 21 Laps, along with Lucasfilm president (though for how much longer remains to be seen) Kathleen Kennedy.
Following the massive success of Deadpool and Wolverine, Levy is reportedly viewed by Disney as "a must-have, must-keep" director, so there's a good chance he will have a significant amount of creative control over the movie.
"I'll say that the experience of crafting this story has forced me to think about that question," Levy said last year when asked what he hopes to bring to the table with his trip to the Galaxy Far, Far Away. "Because there's only so many times that Star Wars movies can revisit the same section of the timeline, and so it's really forced me - because I don't want to do a Star Wars movie that is redundant to others, nor am I interested in doing one that has to serve another movie."
"I really wanted to craft something that felt organic to me, both in tone and characters, so I think that there is certainly the Force and a connection to something bigger than our individual selves. And the way that that can make us powerful, those themes, combined with visual delight and wish fulfilment, that's Star Wars to me."
Lucasfilm also has Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy's Rey-focused movie, James Mangold's Dawn of the Jedi (probably not the official title), and Dave Filoni's "Mandoverse" crossover event in the works.