The future of Star Wars is finally taking shape as Kathleen Kennedy’s replacements have reportedly been revealed. It’s been almost a year now since reports that Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy was approaching retirement, although she’d continue to work with the studio as a producer. Kennedy herself confirmed she was working on social planning, and there’d been a general expectation that an announcement would be made early this year. Now, a new prediction from Puck News claims to reveal just who Kennedy’s replacements will be.
According to Puck News, Kennedy will be replaced by two co-presidents: Lucasfilm’s current Chief Creative Officer (and George Lucas protege) Dave Filoni and ILM stalwart Lynwen Brennan, currently President & General Manager of Lucasfilm Business. This fits with longstanding reports that the role of president was being expanded to include an experienced creative voice as well as a businessperson to handle the operations, given Filoni has never held an executive role before. Puck expect announcements to be made “in the next week or two,” and report that Kennedy’s exit interview has already been organized.
What Filoni & Brennan’s New Roles Mean for Lucasfilm
There’s a sense in which this announcement is pretty much what we’d expected. As George Lucas’ protege, Filoni always seemed to be Kennedy’s natural successor; he already has vast experience working with the fanbase, representing Lucasfilm for years at high-profile conventions. He attended a LEGO event just last night promoting the launch of LEGO’s Smart Bricks, which raised some eyebrows given this hinted at an expansion of his role. Although Filoni was a safe bet as a creative leader for Lucasfilm, his lack of business experience – and the continued expansion of the presidential role – always made it likely he’d have a co-president.
Reports last year had consistently named Carrie Beck (current Executive Vice-President of Live Action Development and Production) as the most probable co-president. That makes Lynwen Brennan something of a surprise, but her vast experience certainly makes her a very good fit indeed. According to her official Lucasfilm profile, Brennan currently oversees the Lucasfilm Franchise groups including Marketing and Integrated Planning, Games, Publishing and Consumer Products, Publicity, Asset Management and Content Strategy, as well as ILM and Skywalker Sound. In 2016, she was awarded a CBE by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to the UK’s visual effects industry.
timing of this new is also interesting, because it contributes to the sense we’re leading into something of a relaunch for Star Wars. This year will see The Mandalorian & Grogu bring the franchise back to the big screen, the first new Star Wars movie since the end of the sequel trilogy, and it sets a new model for Lucasfilm; a small-budget Star Wars film that won’t need to break $1 billion in the global box office to make a profit. Next year is the 50th anniversary of Star Wars, with the original cut of A New Hope returning to theaters, followed by Shawn Levy’s Starfighter. Filoni and Brennan will clearly be able to hit the ground running.
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