For as much lore as George Lucas crammed into every possible minute of the “Star Wars” franchise, the movies themselves have a surprisingly narrow scope. The now-defunct expanded universe — books and video games like “Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic” — hinted at thousands of years of struggle between the light side and the dark side, with Jedi warriors and Sith lords alike caught in an endless battle between good and evil. And even though we’re seven movies into the “Star Wars” universe — eight if you include ‘Rogue One‘ — we’ve never moved beyond the same few decades of the Skywalker family.
All of which raises an interesting question: where will the “Star Wars” series go after ‘Episode IX’? On the one hand, the conclusion of Lucasfilm‘s sequel trilogy gives the franchise an opportunity to open up its universe a little and play with characters and eras not previously seen in the movies. On the other hand, people really do love them Skywalkers. During an interview with Fandango at Star Wars Celebration this past week, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy admitted that no decision has been made yet and that she’s not ruling anything out.
Here’s Kennedy’s full quote on the subject:
I certainly foresee movies past nine. Whether or not we carry on the Skywalker saga… you know, George always intended nine movies, and whether we continue that or not is something we’re talking about right now. If the story warrants it, we’ll absolutely do it. If it actually inspires new ideas, then we’ll probably head in that direction. We just don’t know yet.
If anything, ‘Rogue One’ proved that audiences will turn out for a “Star Wars” movie that doesn’t explicitly involve a member of the Skywalker family, so Lucasfilm shouldn’t be afraid to take anything off the table. I’d love to see a movie that takes place hundreds of years before the events of ‘A New Hope’; I’d also be fine with movies that don’t involve the Jedi whatsoever. Kennedy and company have created an enormous sandbox full of endless possibilities. Now’s the time to have some fun.
