Within the final decade, Denis Villeneuve has helmed Arrival, Blade Runner 2049 and the Dune variations, which rank as among the greatest sci-fi films ever. The director’s not distancing himself from the style anytime quickly, and he’s turned his consideration to a characteristic model of Dune: Messiah subsequent. Nonetheless, when you’re somebody who’s been hoping that Villeneuve may even signal on to direct one of many upcoming Star Wars films, sorry, it’s not going to occur.
Throughout his dialog with Matthew Belloni on The City podcast, Denis Villeneuve admitted that he was the “target market” for Star Wars: A New Hope when it got here out in 1977 as a result of he was 10 years outdated on the time, and added that The Empire Strikes Again was “the film that I anticipated probably the most in my life.” Nonetheless, his enthusiasm for a galaxy far, far-off took a nosedive with the discharge of Return of the Jedi, with the filmmaker explaining:
The issue is that all of it derailed in 1983 with Return of the Jedi. It’s an extended story. I used to be 15 years outdated, and my greatest good friend and I wished to take a cab and go to L.A. and discuss to George Lucas — we had been so offended! Nonetheless right this moment, the Ewoks. It turned out to be a comedy for youths. … Star Wars grew to become crystallized in its personal mythology, very dogmatic, it appeared like a recipe, no extra surprises. So I’m not dreaming to do a Star Wars as a result of it looks like code may be very codified.
So this isn’t even a matter of Denis Villeneuve not approving of the more moderen Star Wars films and the TV reveals which can be streaming with a Disney+ subscription. He grew to become disillusioned with this franchise over 40 years in the past when he and his good friend had been disenchanted by Return of the Jedi, with the Ewoks particularly being particularly heinous offenders. So whereas different administrators would leap on the probability to go away their stamp on the cinematic facet of the Star Wars franchise, Villeneuve is content material with by no means exploring that world.
Happily for Star Wars followers, there’s no scarcity of flicks which can be within the franchise’s inventive pipeline, though to this point just one has an official launch date, with The Mandalorian & Grogu popping out in Could 2026. Among the many undated films embody the Rey film being directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, Dave Filoni’s New Republic period film, and James Mangold’s film concerning the daybreak of the Jedi and the origins of the Pressure. It was additionally just lately reported that Simon Kinberg is growing a brand new trilogy of Star Wars films that will probably be set after The Rise of Skywalker.
As for Denis Villeneuve, his newest film, Dune: Half Two, could be streamed now with a Max subscription alongside its predecessor and the brand new collection Dune: Prophecy. Final month, the director stated he was in the midst of writing Dune: Messiah, and it’s wanting like that would be the the “occasion movie” he has lined up for December 18, 2026.