The movie branch of the Star Wars franchise has been in an interesting position over the past several years, as no theatrical films have been released since 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker. Some films have since entered production, thankfully, though fans were recently met with the news of a scrapped production – a film about Adam Driver’s Ben Solo. Fans lit up social media when sharing their thoughts on the since-rejected script, and it marks yet another big-screen SW production that’s bitten the dust in recent years.
Ben Solo’s Story Would’ve Been Continued In A Film From An A+ Director
Adam Driver recently revealed he teamed up with acclaimed director Steven Soderbergh to develop a story called The Hunt for Ben Solo. The movie would’ve been set after the events of The Rise of Skywalker and focused on the mysterious resurrection of Solo – formerly known as Kylo Ren. Soderbergh and Rebecca Blunt produced an outline and pitched it to the Lucasfilm execs, including company president Kathleen Kennedy. Scott Z. Burns was initially commissioned to write a script, but the project ultimately didn’t happen.
Per the Marriage Story alum, it was Disney executives Bob Iger and Alan Bergman who shot down the idea, as they were unclear as to how Solo could still be alive. Burns’ screenplay received some massive praise from Driver, who referred to it as “one of the coolest (expletive) scripts I had ever been a part of.” Driver also said he felt he had some “unfinished business” with Ben.
For his part, Steven Soderbergh – Out of Sight, Traffic, the Ocean’s Trilogy and more – explained on Bluesky that he “did not enjoy lying about the existence of THE HUNT FOR BEN SOLO” but that “it really did need to remain a secret…until now!” In a separate post, Soderbergh added further details regarding the corporate side of the situation:
Also, in the aftermath of the HFBS situation, I asked Kathy Kennedy if LFL had ever turned in a finished movie script for greenlight to Disney and had it rejected. She said no, this was a first.
Star Wars fans have been sounding off on the scrapped project, with many now campaigning for it to happen. Devotees even arranged for an airplane with a banner reading, “Save The Hunt for Ben Solo” to be flown over the Disney offices. The House of Mouse itself has yet to formally respond to the buzz, though a recent video posting of TROS’ final battle convinced some that the studio was trolling fans. This honestly feels like another blow for a fanbase that’s already seen other projects fall by the wayside.
What Other Star Wars Projects Ended Up Being Scrapped?
There’s quite a history of scrapped or discarded Star Wars projects, particularly when it comes to films. In 2018, it was reported that David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, the creators of Game of Thrones, would write and produce a new trilogy of SW films, which would theoretically focus on the rise of the Jedi Order. In 2024, Weiss and Benioff didn’t seem bullish about the movies happening due to James Mangold’s (later-announced) movie overlapping with theirs in some ways narratively.
In 2020, it was also reported that Lucasfilm tapped Sleight and Devotion director J.D. Dillard to helm a Star Wars movie. Plot details were (unsurprisingly) kept under wraps at the time. Plans changed by 2022, though, as it was at that time it was reported that Dillard’s film had been dropped, making the SW franchise’s movie future more uncertain.
At present, there are a few other productions that remain in limbo in some ways, including James Mangold’s film about the origins of the Jedi as well as Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s film about the new Jedi Order, which would mark the return of Daisy Ridley’s Rey. Also, this year, Last Jedi director Rian Johnson said he’s still open to making his trilogy of films, which was originally announced in 2017 but was later said to be unprioritized by Lucasfilm. The status of films from Patty Jenkins and Taika Waititi are also unclear.
Fans can, at the very least, look forward to The Mandalorian and Grogu and Star Wars: Starfighter, which are set to be released in 2026 and 2027, respectively. Still, some would likely argue that information doesn’t take away the sting of losing The Hunt for Ben Solo or any other scrapped SW fare. For now, let’s pour one out for those projects, and those who want to check out movies and TV shows set within the galaxy far, far away can stream them with a Disney+ subscription.