Following up from last week’s piece regarding future Star Wars films, this week we take a look at television. Is it television? Is it streaming? What exactly is it? The line is blurred but I watch Star Wars streaming shows on my TV in the living room, so I’m sticking with television.
This past week Lucasfilm made the announcement that Dave Filoni is now CCO of the company and clarified the status of the three previously announced films from Celebration and all are very much still going ahead with Daisy Ridley’s film front and centre. Nothing was cemented regarding television and only passing and vague comments surrounding a second season of Ahsoka so we won’t be looking at rumours here (this includes the never-ending speculation regarding Kenobi season 2 thanks to McGregor himself) – only concrete projects.
Let’s take a look.
SKELETON CREW (2024)
This project had once been projected to arrive at the end of this year, presumably Christmas, but that is clearly not happening. One suspects that the actors strike could have something to do with it – maybe some ADR was needed in post-production or Lucasfilm wanted Jude Law to actually be able promote the project. Either way, I’m a personal advocate for breaks and gaps between shows. Too much that comes too soon can force a sense of apathy on people or give no sense of hype. There’s a likely chance that this show could come in the first quarter of 2024 and the scant details we know is that Jude Law is playing a force-sensitive being and the show is set at the same time as The Mandalorian. The project comes from Spider-Man: No Way Home alumni Jon Watts and is said to be in the vein of the Amblin-80s coming-of-age movies (think The Goonies, E.T). Strongly expect this show to be next.
THE ACOLYTE (2024)
Attendees at Celebration Europe this year were teased to a trailer to this project and despite the fact it likely would come next in the calendar year – again not much in known. From Kennedy herself we do know that the show is set roughly 100 years before The Phantom Menace and will take us into the final days of The High Republic. We can presumably expect to see lots of Jedi and lightsabers but let’s take a realistic approach – this show could have a tough sell. I imagine it would need to walk a fine line between keeping in canon with the endless books now released in that time period whilst not exclusively playing to that audience. I know plenty of die-hard Star Wars fans who have never picked up a comic or novel set during The High Republic. Seeing Jedi versus Sith in the trailers could bring in casual viewers but time will tell. Leslye Headland of Russian Doll is overseeing the project that took the cast and crew as far as Portugal for filming. Potentially a summer release.
ANDOR: SEASON 2 (2024)
There were only a few short weeks of filming left to go before principal photography was due to finish but strikes meant that couldn’t happen. This show has a targeted release date of August 2024 (September would make sense much like season 1) and if the crew took the time during the strikes to continue post-production work on what they had filmed then there is no reason at all why this show can’t make its release date. This will arguably be the fandoms most anticipated project of the year after the critical success of the first season and having been in the panel for the making-of at this year’s Celebration and witnessing the trailer then things look promising indeed. We have been told, on record, time and time again that this show will span several years and take us right into the events of Rogue One. Unlike pretty much every characters in Star Wars – I have a good feeling about this.
THE BAD BATCH: SEASON 3 – THE FINAL SEASON (2024)
This show came as a welcome surprise for many with its quality storytelling and character development and I was lucky enough to be in the panel for this at Celebration Europe. A quick trailer was shown and announced that the final episodes will debut in 2024. With how animation works, the actors should have long had their work on the show completed while the animators work their magic. Despite strikes, and much like Andor, there’s no reason this show can’t come out in the 2024 calendar year, it will just depend on how much content Disney want to put out. Like Marvel in recent months, Iger has commented that he is aware of potential fatigue.
THE MANDALORIAN: SEASON 4 (2025?)
The bread and butter of Disney+ is gearing up for its next season. The show, despite a mixed and uneven third season, is undeniably a global phenomenon. We know nothing about who is back, where the story will go or even a release date but if the show begins filming next year and then enters post – potentially a release date to coincide with Celebration Japan in April 2025 would make sense. Lucasfilm, after all, will need something to bring with them after the Daisy Ridley-led movie has been pushed back from Christmas of that same year. Expect announcements in the new year but if one thing is for sure, we can expect a certain little green friend to come back.
Believe it or not – that’s it for projects that we have concrete information on. There are continuous episodes of Young Jedi Adventures to come but there has been nothing new about a second season of The Book of Boba Fett , and at this point I think it’s safe to say that Rangers of the New Republic has gone the way of the Dodo.
Now, I say “that’s it” but that’s a lot for one year if all comes out as planned and who knows what projects Lucasfilm and Filoni have been cooking up behind-the-scenes. Whatever that may be though, let’s hope it’s not a certain sequel entitled: The Star Wars Holiday Special 2: Life Day – The Musical: On Ice!