‘The Hunt for Ben Solo’ Just Got Its Best Shot at Actually Happening
For years, Adam Driver’s Ben Solo has been one of the most discussed what-ifs in modern blockbuster filmmaking. The character’s abrupt death in ‘The Rise of Skywalker’ left a significant portion of the fanbase feeling the sequel trilogy ended on an incomplete note, and that sense of unfinished business never really went away. If anything, it quietly grew louder, and recent events in a galaxy far, far away have made the idea of his return feel more relevant than ever.
Driver had been discussing the possibility of returning to the franchise since as far back as 2021, telling the Associated Press he always maintained that with the right director and the right story, he would return in a heartbeat. That combination eventually materialized in the form of acclaimed filmmaker Steven Soderbergh, and the two developed what became one of the most intriguing unmade projects in recent memory. Soderbergh roughed out the story with screenwriter Rebecca Blunt before Scott Z. Burns joined to pen the script, with Driver describing the finished product as “handmade and character-driven” and comparing its sensibility to ‘The Empire Strikes Back.’
The project, titled ‘The Hunt for Ben Solo,’ was set after the events of ‘The Rise of Skywalker’ and would have followed the character on a search for redemption. When Driver and Soderbergh brought it to Lucasfilm, the reception was overwhelmingly positive, with Kathleen Kennedy, Dave Filoni, and Cary Beck all embracing the concept. The wall they hit came further up the chain. Disney’s Bob Iger and Alan Bergman ultimately said no, with Driver recalling their reasoning simply as not seeing how Ben Solo could still be alive.
That rejection sparked a significant wave of fan support, including a petition gathering over 8,000 signatures and a sustained social media campaign. Disney never publicly responded, and the film was widely presumed dead. Now, however, an unlikely catalyst has shifted the conversation. ‘The Mandalorian and Grogu,’ the franchise’s first theatrical release in seven years, debuted over Memorial Day weekend with a three-day domestic gross of $81.7 million, the franchise’s worst opening since ‘Attack of the Clones’ in 2002. Its second weekend brought a brutal 69 percent drop, marking the steepest decline in the franchise’s theatrical history.
With a production budget of $165 million before marketing, the film would need to significantly outperform its current trajectory to avoid being considered a financial disappointment for Disney and Lucasfilm. The underperformance has reignited the broader debate about what kind of ‘Star Wars’ stories audiences actually want to see on the big screen. Spinoff films have historically struggled compared to the numbered saga entries, and the data continues to reinforce that pattern. The safest path forward for the franchise almost certainly runs through the Skywalker lineage.
Simon Kinberg is reportedly leading the effort to develop Episodes X, XI, and XII, with industry journalist Jeff Sneider reporting that Daisy Ridley’s Rey would be positioned in a mentor role reminiscent of Obi-Wan Kenobi across the new trilogy. Kinberg’s project is the only theatrical ‘Star Wars’ endeavor currently structured as a trilogy, positioning it as the true next chapter of the broader saga following ‘The Rise of Skywalker.’ That framework creates an obvious opening for Ben Solo to reenter the story, whether as the subject of a standalone film that feeds into the new trilogy or as a central element of the first episode itself.
The case for bringing him back has never been stronger. The franchise needs familiar, beloved characters to anchor its theatrical future, and the chemistry between Driver’s Ben and Ridley’s Rey remains one of the sequel trilogy’s most widely praised elements. Whether ‘The Hunt for Ben Solo’ arrives as the standalone film Driver and Soderbergh envisioned, or whether its story beats get woven into the fabric of Kinberg’s new trilogy, the path forward seems clearer now than it has at any point since Disney first passed on the pitch. Do you think Ben Solo’s return should be the centerpiece of Episode X, or does the character deserve his own standalone film before the next trilogy begins?
