Taika Waititi Confirms His 'Star Wars' Movie Has Been Put "on Ice" Indefinitely

The director shifts his focus to other feature projects while shelving the standalone galactic adventure.

Summary

Taika Waititi confirmed his Star Wars movie has been put on ice indefinitely after being in development since 2020

The director revealed during an interview with Inverse that he is focusing on roughly four other feature films

Exiting Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy previously described the standalone project as still somewhat alive

Taika Waititi has confirmed that his long-gestating Star Wars film has been put on hold indefinitely after four years in development. The filmmaker addressed the status of the project while speaking to Inverse during promotional rounds for his latest directorial effort, Klara and the Sun.

When asked about the space adventure, which was initially announced in 2020, Waititi was candid about where it currently stands. “I hate to break this to you, but we’re going to actually put it on ice and we’re working on a different thing together,” Waititi said. After his publicist reportedly cautioned him against elaborating, the director added, “Well, there’s your answer. I don’t even know how to dress it up or make it even vague. It’s very iced. I’ve got about four other movies I’m trying to do. Ice ages do come to an end…Who knows?”

Waititi had previously expressed a desire to inject lighthearted energy into the franchise, noting in January that he was “trying to go back and harness a little bit more of the fun from the original films, which is what I remember [from] them.” Expanding on his intended creative direction, Waititi explained, “The stakes are very high, and there’s serious things going on, but there’s also a lot of fun to be had in those films. That’s what I was trying to bring back. I was trying to work in a world that was a little bit separate to that because they’ve got so many things going on within that space. For me to do something there, it would need to be a little different and a little bit more its own thing.”

While exiting Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy previously stated the film was “still somewhat alive,” the project is now paused as Waititi turns his attention to other directorial priorities.