Kennedy And Favreau Battling For Control Of Star Wars In A Lucasfilm Civil War
There's ongoing trouble brewing in the Star Wars universe with Jon Favreau and Kathleen Kennedy vying for creative control over the franchise
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Star Wars fans are used to seeing battles waged in any manner of setting whether it be in the depths of space, secluded forests, icy tundras, or anything else in between. The franchise has been known for an expansive and elaborate universe that encompasses basically anything one can imagine. But a new kind of battle is heating up in the Star Wars franchise, though it isn’t playing out on screen. This one is behind the scenes with Kathleen Kennedy and Jon Favreau wrestling for control of the Star Wars franchise at Disney.
It’s not exactly news that Kathleen Kennedy and Jon Favreau have been at odds creatively over their visions for the Star Wars franchise. That much has been reported and played itself on-screen as well with the differing storylines. But it does appear as if things are heating up with each digging their respective heels in around who should control the central pieces of projects moving forward. At first, it appeared Kathleen Kennedy would be fired from her role as head of LucasFilm, leaving Favreau in the driver’s seat. But that isn’t set in stone at this point.
The rift between Favreau and Kennedy is well-documented with both having competing visions over different Star Wars stories. Kennedy took over LucasFilm in 2012 and was responsible for the rollout and issues with the trilogy sequel that ended with the much-maligned The Rise of Skywalker. Fans and critics alike were disappointed with the ending, laying much blame at Kennedy’s feet over the directorial changes and vision.
Meanwhile, Favreau has had a decidedly different run in his time helming The Mandalorian. He’s been put in charge of the new slew of Star Wars shows that will be hitting Disney+ over the next couple of years. The Mandalorian, specifically, has been a massive critical and financial success for the streaming platform, earning rave reviews and just entering the zeitgeist in its story about the titular bounty hunter the baby Yoda in his charge.
It even came out recently that Favreau was going to use his new Star Wars vehicles to retcon the events of The Rise of Skywalker by wiping that story completely out of the franchise’s canon. In short: he hated how that movie turned out and wants to rewrite the narrative going forward.
According to these rumors, originally from Pirates and Princesses, the infighting around Star Wars is split into three different groups. The first is the Kathleen Kennedy-stans who originally came on in 2012 and were responsible for that run of movies. There’s also the Favreau group who’ve developed their stories from outside the LucasFilm umbrella. And finally, there’s the (presumably) Bob Iger group of old-school Disney folks who just want to continue putting out stories by avoiding conflicts.
In all, this potential civil war brewing around the Star Wars franchise could have ramifications moving forward. If it goes unresolved and all players stay in their respective positions then we could see a fracturing of storylines with different realities playing out in parallel. It would make for a confusing future. So here’s to hoping there’s at least some resolution, whatever it may be, that aligns creative visions.
