Lucasfilm has attached Jon Watts to helm the first film of a Simon Kinberg-written trilogy intended to serve as Episode X, a move that advances plans for the next chapter of the Skywalker Saga. The project is being developed as a continuation of the multi-generational Luke Skywalker storyline, and sources say Rey Skywalker, the Jedi played by Daisy Ridley, would appear in some capacity.
Kinberg has been scripting the mystery trilogy since late 2024. Insiders describe the films as the next instalments following Episodes I through IX, though the trilogy has not received formal approval from parent company Disney. Lucasfilm declined to comment. Executives see the Kinberg effort as the project furthest along after the studio’s immediate slate, led by Star Wars: Starfighter.
Starfighter, directed by Shawn Levy and starring Ryan Gosling, is expected to reach theatres May 27, 2027, the 50th anniversary of Star Wars. Only after that release will the company’s development plans for the Kinberg trilogy likely face their next major milestone, including a potential greenlight from Disney.
Watts returns to the franchise after co-creating the 2024 series Skeleton Crew. He directed two episodes of that show, which paired Jude Law with a roster of high-profile directors including David Lowery, Lee Isaac Chung, Jake Schreier, Bryce Dallas Howard, and the Daniels. Watts earned studio confidence with his earlier work, moving from the indie thriller Cop Car into Marvel’s Tom Holland Spider-Man relaunch, directing Homecoming in 2017, Far From Home in 2019, and No Way Home in 2021, films that grew into larger productions and commercial hits.
His post-Spider-Man features include Wolfs, the George Clooney-Brad Pitt film released by Apple that performed poorly and disrupted its theatrical plans, a misstep that nevertheless sits alongside Watts’s proven ability to manage large-scale, effects-heavy filmmaking. For Lucasfilm, installing a director with block‑buster experience signals an attempt to secure steady stewardship for a high-profile return to the Skywalker narrative.
For now, the Watts-Kinberg trilogy remains a project in development. The next concrete steps are further script work, internal approvals, and a decision from Disney on whether to move from development into production.
