Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy has been around Hollywood a long time. But she’s still learning.
Speaking to Vanity Fair’s Anthony Breznican, she admitted that the 2018 Solo film, about the younger years of the swashbuckling space cowboy Han Solo, taught her a lesson: don’t recast a core role.
Kennedy took over Lucasfilm in 2012 with a goal to inject new energy into the Star Wars franchise. Solo was one such attempt, with Alden Ehrenreich in the iconic Han Solo role pioneered by Harrison Ford.
The film made less at the box office than any other live-action Star Wars movie.
“There should be moments along the way when you learn things,” says Kennedy. “Now it does seem so abundantly clear that we can’t do that.”
The success of the slate of Star Wars television series may make it easier to break new ground, as new stars and storylines are introduced.
“I hesitate to use the word trilogies anymore, becauseStar Warsis much more aboutpersistent storytelling,” Kennedy says.
As for the film side of that, “We have a road map,” Kennedy says.