LucasfilmCalling all Star Wars fans (which should be everyone FYI): A new movie is in the works, and it’s based on a fan-favourite video game.
The film, based on the 2003 game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, is currently being written by Laeta Kalogridis, sources close to the project have confirmed.
The much-loved game was set thousands of years before the films, which gives the project a wider scope to work from and – let’s face it – is exciting for fans who will no doubt be looking forward to a change of scenery.
20th Century FoxAs reported by Buzzfeed News, Kalogridis’ other credits include Avatar and Shutter Island.
Knights of the Old Republic is a role-playing game where, in classic form, it’s Jedi vs Sith, set nearly 4,000 years before the events of 1977’s Star Wars: A New Hope.
Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy confirmed to MTV News at a Star Wars Celebration in April they were developing something, although she didn’t give any further details.
Kennedy told the reporter:
Yes, we are developing something to look at. Right now, I have no idea where things might fall.
#Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy talked to us about the future of #StarWars – including a Knights of the Old Republic movie and female filmmakers taking the helm, as well as Palpatine’s surprise return in the trailer for @StarWars #EpisodeIX pic.twitter.com/HCjEhdlRv7
— MTV NEWS (@MTVNEWS) April 16, 2019
According to three sources, Kalogridis is close to finishing the first script of a potential Knights of the Old Republic trilogy.
She is the first woman writer of a Star Wars movie since The Empire Strikes Back in 1980, when Leigh Brackett received a cowriting credit with Lawrence Kasdan.
This isn’t the only exciting news for Star Wars fans; earlier this month, it was announced that the next film in the franchise will be released in December 2022 – and it will be overseen by Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss.
This big news was announced by Disney CEO Robert Iger at Disney’s annual Upfronts event, with Benioff and Weiss now being free from Game of Thrones commitments.
As reported by Variety, Iger confirmed:
We’re hard at work already, but we felt three years was the proper amount of time to not only take a breather and reset, but to gear up for the next film’s release.
We did a deal with David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, who are famous for Game of Thrones, and the next movie we release will be theirs. We’re not saying anything more about that.
The film will be the first of a new trilogy, the final two of which are set to be released in 2024 and 2026.
Well, there you have it. Plenty of exciting news to get your teeth into if you’re a Star Wars fan.
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A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).