Lucasfilm Reportedly Putting 'Star Wars Story' Spin-Off Films On Hold

Even though it appeared that “Star Wars” fans were excited about the upcoming (but unannounced) “Obi-Wan Kenobi” and “Boba Fett” spin-off films, the folks at Lucasfilm are having second thoughts. After the disappointing box office performance of the recent “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” a new report suggests that Lucasfilm is deciding to take a different route moving forward, and it may leave those spin-offs on the backburner.

Collider is reporting that Lucasfilm is pausing development of the ‘Obi-Wan’ and “Boba Fett” films, and instead is focusing on the upcoming “Star Wars: Episode IX” and Rian Johnson’s new trilogy. This news comes on the heels of the aforementioned ‘Solo’ drastically underperforming at the box office.

READ MORE: Ron Howard: “I Feel Badly” About The ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ Box Office Performance

Before the film’s release in late May, ‘Solo’ was projected to hit as high as $170 million during its first weekend of release. However, almost a month later, the film hasn’t broken $200 million yet. Worldwide, the news is even grimmer as “Star Wars” continues to show that it’s much more of a commodity in North America. While most studios would be pleased with a summer movie reaching these numbers, Lucasfilm has a track record of record-breaking stats with their “Star Wars” films.

When everything is all said and done, and all the box office receipts are collected, many are projecting ‘Solo’ to finish barely above $400 million worldwide. That would be far below just the domestic total of the previous spin-off film, ‘Rogue One.’

As far as the slate of films that Lucasfilm reportedly has in development, the Rian Johnson trilogy is said to be a priority, as are the films by “Game of Thrones” showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff. All other films are now going to be “paused” for the time being.

So, for fans hoping to see Ewan McGregor return to the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi, what seemed like a sure thing is now moving further and further away from reality.