‘Klara and the Sun’ Director Taika Waititi Confirms His ‘Star Wars’ Film Won’t Happen Anytime Soon

Few ‘Star Wars’ projects have generated as much curiosity, or as much uncertainty, as Taika Waititi’s long-gestating entry in the galaxy far, far away. Lucasfilm officially announced the film on May 4, 2020, with the Oscar-winning ‘Jojo Rabbit’ filmmaker set to direct and co-write alongside ‘1917’ screenwriter Krysty Wilson-Cairns.

On paper, it looked like a natural fit. Waititi had already directed the first season finale of ‘The Mandalorian’ and voiced the bounty hunter droid IG-11, and fans had been begging for him to take on a full feature. By 2022, then-Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy said the goal was to bring his film to theaters in late 2023, but that date came and went without cameras rolling.

Now, more than 6 years after the announcement, Waititi has confirmed what many fans suspected. While promoting his new film ‘Klara and the Sun’, the director told Inverse that the project has been shelved for the foreseeable future. “It’s very iced. I’ve got about 4 other movies I’m trying to do,” he said.

Waititi explained that he and his current writing partner, Tony McNamara, have decided to put the ‘Star Wars’ film on ice and collaborate on something different instead. McNamara, a 2-time Oscar-nominated screenwriter, is known for ‘The Favourite’ and ‘Poor Things’.

The moment was apparently candid enough to make his team nervous. His publicist reportedly signaled that he shouldn’t say more, and Waititi admitted he didn’t even know how to dress the news up or make it sound vague. Still, the filmmaker left the door slightly ajar. “Ice ages do come to an end… Who knows?” he added, suggesting the project could thaw out at some point down the line.

That uncertainty mirrors earlier comments from Kennedy, who, as the outgoing head of Lucasfilm, described Waititi’s film as still somewhat alive. The latest update also doesn’t appear to stem from any bad blood between the director and the studio, according to coverage of the interview.

Earlier this year, Waititi had told Variety that he was hoping to recapture more of the playful energy he remembered from the original trilogy. He said he wanted the film to feel a little different and more like its own thing, balancing high stakes with a sense of fun.

Waititi’s project now joins a crowded list of ‘Star Wars’ films that have been announced but never made it to production. The Playlist noted that the franchise’s development freezer is getting increasingly full, even as other projects like ‘Starfighter’ continue moving forward.

The road for his film had been bumpy from early on. Back in 2022, Waititi told TheWrap that his movie would not shoot that year, as Lucasfilm’s theatrical plans kept shifting around projects like Patty Jenkins’ ‘Rogue Squadron’.

Meet Klara. Your new best (artificial) friend. 🌞 Jenna Ortega is Klara in Director Taika Waititi’s adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s #KlaraAndTheSun – coming exclusively to theatres October 23. Watch the trailer now. https://t.co/GTNCw8RBrx

— Sony Pictures (@SonyPictures) June 22, 2026

For now, the director’s attention is on ‘Klara and the Sun’, his adaptation of the Kazuo Ishiguro novel starring Jenna Ortega. The film has drawn a mixed response, with Variety critic Guy Lodge arguing that Waititi’s decision to lean into whimsical comedy undermined the material.

With multiple other films in development and a new collaboration with McNamara underway, it seems unlikely Waititi will be returning to ‘Star Wars’ anytime soon. Fans who were hoping for his irreverent spin on the franchise will have to settle for his work on ‘The Mandalorian’, at least until that metaphorical ice age ends.

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