Kathleen Kennedy resigns as head of Lucasfilm, the studio behind ‘Star Wars’

Kathleen Kennedy Steps Down at Lucasfilm

Walt Disney Co. announced that Kathleen Kennedy will resign from her position as president of Lucasfilm this week, transitioning to a full-time producing role.

In her place, Dave Filoni—who learned from Star Wars creator George Lucas and co-created the hit series The Mandalorian—has been appointed as the president and chief creative officer. He will collaborate with co-president Lynwen Brennan, who handles the studio’s business operations.

At 51, Filoni is poised to take charge of one of cinema’s most successful film franchises, along with various live-action and animated TV projects.

Kennedy, now 72, has led Lucasfilm since its acquisition by Disney in 2012. She oversaw the original Star Wars trilogy and several sequels, including the popular spinoff, Rogue One.

In her statement, Kennedy expressed that it has been an immense privilege to work with the talented individuals at Lucasfilm for over a decade.

The 2018 film, Solo, saw a new actor take on the iconic smuggler role originally portrayed by Harrison Ford, but it didn’t perform well at the box office.

After 2019, Disney paused its Star Wars movie productions to focus on live-action series, notably The Mandalorian featuring Pedro Pascal and the beloved Baby Yoda.

As Kennedy rethinks their movie strategy, Disney has canceled planned Star Wars films with directors Patty Jenkins and Rian Johnson.

Meanwhile, Filoni has previously directed successful and critically lauded series like The Mandalorian and Ahsoka.

Both Kennedy and Filoni have worked closely with George Lucas, the creator of the original 1977 Star Wars series. This franchise has generated over $10.3 billion globally, according to ComScore.

Lucas specifically chose Kennedy to succeed him at the helm of Lucasfilm. The five films she’s led accumulated about $5.9 billion in revenue, with 2015’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens being particularly successful, amassing over $2 billion worldwide.

Under Kennedy’s leadership, Lucasfilm expanded its efforts into live-action streaming series like The Mandalorian, which premiered with Disney+ in 2019, along with projects such as Ahsoka and Andor.

The company also developed Star Wars-themed attractions at Disney World in Florida and Disneyland in California.

In 2005, Lucas hired Filoni to help set up a Star Wars animation studio, where he contributed significantly to the animated series The Clone Wars, often recognizable in a cowboy hat at film events.

A film based on The Mandalorian is set to release in May, co-written by Filoni and titled The Mandalorian & Grogu. Another film, Star Wars: Starfighter, starring Ryan Gosling, is also lined up for May 2027, with Kennedy continuing as a producer on those projects.