‘Star Wars’ Fans Just Got Another Update on Daisy Ridley’s ‘New Jedi Order’ Movie, and It’s Complicated

For years, the next chapter of Rey’s story has felt like a mirage on the Jakku horizon. Every time it seems close enough to touch, it shimmers and moves farther away.

Plans for a Rey-led film were first announced at Star Wars Celebration in 2023, with the concept picking up 15 years after ‘The Rise of Skywalker’ and following Rey as she begins a new era of Jedi. Ridley appeared on stage to promote the reveal, and later admitted she had signed on without reading a script.

The latest twist comes from a fresh report that Star Wars Holocron highlighted on X, pointing to ComicBook.com. According to the report, Ridley’s ‘New Jedi Order’ movie has not been scrapped, but it is on hold while Lucasfilm prioritizes ‘Star Wars: Episode X’. ComicBook.com describes the standalone project as effectively shelved so that Rey can serve as a legacy mentor figure instead.

The rumored pause is part of a long pattern. Disney pulled the film from its schedule in 2024, after it was originally slated to premiere on December 18, 2026. There has been no word on when, or even if, it will get a new release date.

The script has been a big part of the problem. Damon Lindelof and Justin Britt-Gibson wrote the original draft before leaving over creative differences, and ‘Peaky Blinders’ creator Steven Knight then spent well over a year trying to crack it. George Nolfi was later brought in to write it, and Lucasfilm was reportedly still weighing his draft in late 2025.

Ridley has stayed publicly patient through all of it. In February 2025, she said the extra time would help ensure the script was the best way to tell the story, adding that she didn’t think any fans would want it rushed. That is a diplomatic stance for an actor whose signature role has been stuck in development limbo for years.

So what does ‘Episode X’ have to do with it? Simon Kinberg is writing a brand-new trilogy, with ‘Star Wars: Skeleton Crew’ director Jon Watts attached to direct ‘Episode X’. Lucasfilm is reportedly seeking two relatively unknown actors as the leads, with Ridley returning as Rey Skywalker in a supporting role.

That setup mirrors a familiar formula. ‘Episode X’ will reportedly have two leads, much like ‘The Force Awakens’, which introduced Rey alongside John Boyega’s Finn, and a slightly older Rey is expected to mentor them. It’s unclear whether she will have founded her new Jedi Order by the time the story takes place.

Not every outlet reads the situation the same way. Film Stories, citing a report from Knight Edge Media, says ‘New Jedi Order’ has been shelved in favor of Kinberg’s ‘Episode X’. That is a stronger word than “on hold,” and the gap between the two descriptions is exactly why fans are still parsing every update.

Earlier reports pointed in a gentler direction. Scooper Daniel Richtman previously claimed the project was not canceled, only temporarily on hold while other ‘Star Wars’ films moved forward first. Inverse notes that the film has never been officially canceled, and speculates that it may simply need other movies to lay groundwork before it can move forward.

Meanwhile, Lucasfilm’s big-screen return keeps inching along. ‘Star Wars: Starfighter’ opens in UK cinemas on May 28, 2027. That film is set after ‘The Rise of Skywalker’ and could even inform the story of a future Rey movie.

For now, Rey’s future looks less like a solo adventure and more like a passing of the lightsaber. If ‘Episode X’ does the heavy lifting of introducing a new generation, the ‘New Jedi Order’ film may only return once the groundwork is already laid, and once Lucasfilm finally decides what story it wants to tell.