After 14 years leading the company, taking over as president as George Lucas prepared the company for its sale to Disney, Kathleen Kennedy is stepping down as president of Lucasfilm, with Dave Filoni and Lynwen Brennan taking over as President and Chief Creative Officer and as Co-President respectively. Kennedy will continue with Lucasfilm as a full-time producer, with The Mandalorian and Grogu and Star Wars Starfighter on the immediate horizon.
Lucasfilm announced today that after 14 years of leading the studio, President Kathleen Kennedy is stepping down from her role. Kennedy will return to full-time producing, including the studio’s upcoming feature films The Mandalorian and Grogu and Star Wars: Starfighter.
Dave Filoni, who worked closely with creator George Lucas to build the Lucasfilm animation department on Star Wars: The Clone Wars and helped launch Star Wars live-action series alongside Jon Favreau on The Mandalorian, will take on creative leadership of the company as President and Chief Creative Officer and Lynwen Brennan will serve as Co-President.
“My love of storytelling was shaped by the films of Kathleen Kennedy and George Lucas. I never dreamed I would be privileged to learn the craft of filmmaking from both of them,” said Filoni. “From Rey to Grogu, Kathy has overseen the greatest expansion in Star Wars storytelling onscreen that we have ever seen. I am incredibly grateful to Kathy, George, Bob Iger and Alan Bergman for their trust and the opportunity to lead Lucasfilm in this new role, doing a job I truly love. May the Force be with you.”
“Lucasfilm has played such a meaningful part in my life,” said Brennan. “It’s a community of inspiring storytellers with a rebel spirit like no other, and I am honored to join Dave Filoni in leading us forward. I have been so fortunate to learn from George Lucas, Kathy Kennedy and Alan Bergman and have unwavering faith in Dave’s creative vision for the next chapter in this storied studio’s legacy.”
We discussed the possibility of these changes on this weeks edition of Making Tracks, and shall certainly be talking about it again on episode 247, which is out next week, but for now we send our thanks to Honorary Fantha Tracker Kathleen for fourteen years which saw five movies, numerous series, two park expansions, countless comics, books, computer games, Celebrations and more, leaving the saga set to roar into its second half century.
