‘The First Jedi’: Benioff & Weiss Talk About Their Abandoned ‘Star Wars’ Project & Why It Never Happened

Even though it would appear that Lucasfilm has its ducks in a row regarding the future of “Star Wars” films (even if the studio throws the odd curveball), it wasn’t that long ago when things really felt like absolute chaos. People were hired to develop films, conflicting reports would follow. People would leave projects. More projects would start up. It was just hard to keep track of what was and wasn’t happening. One of those projects that was caught in the whirlwind was a proposed new trilogy from David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, the two men behind “Game of Thrones.” For a time, at least, it seemed as if they were the future of “Star Wars.” Well, eventually they, too, were leaving Lucasfilm behind. And now, years later, they’re talking about it.

READ MORE: The 70 Most Anticipated TV Shows & Mini-Series Of 2024

In a new interview with THR, where David Benioff and D.B. Weiss talk about their latest epic series, “3 Body Problem,” the duo also briefly discuss their time working at Lucasfilm on a new “Star Wars” project. In fact, they even spill the beans about what the project would have been and why they think it didn’t move ahead.

“We wanted to do ‘The First Jedi,’” Benioff says. “Basically how the Jedi Order came to be, why it came to be, the first lightsaber …” 

Weiss added, jokingly, “And we were annoyed as hell when [Rian Johnson, the duo’s longtime friend and ‘3BP’ producer] called his movie ‘The Last Jedi.’ He completely destroyed the obvious title for what we were working on.” 

READ MORE: ‘Star Wars’: David Benioff & D.B. Weiss Hoped To Explore The Origins Of The Jedi & Split With Lucasfilm Had Been Brewing For Months

This sort of lines up with the rumors that were floating around regarding the duo’s “Star Wars” films. Many believed they were working on a prequel that would take place well before any of the other films, with some concluding that it must be a “Knights of the Old Republic” adaptation. But it appears the truth was the prequel would have gone back to, well, the beginning. 

So, why didn’t it work out?

“[Lucasfilm] ended up not wanting to do a ‘First Jedi’ story,” said Benioff. “We had a very specific story idea in mind, and ultimately they decided they didn’t want to do that. And we totally get it. It’s their company and their IP, but we weren’t the droids they were looking for.” 

Interestingly, it would appear Lucasfilm wasn’t totally against the idea of a film examining the origins of the Jedi, as the studio recently announced a ‘Dawn of the Jedi’ film that would be written and directed by James Mangold. It’s unclear if anything Benioff and Weiss were doing will influence the new film, but it seems as if Lucasfilm just didn’t want their version of the story.

Regardless, it would appear Benioff and Weiss hold no grudges against the folks at Lucasfilm. So, who knows? Maybe the duo will find themselves back in the galaxy far, far away in the future.