'Star Wars' Filming With Rey Not Planned Anytime Soon — World of Reel

There are rumors circulating online that LucasFilm's Rey movie, potentially titled “New Jedi Order,” is set to shoot in September. I hate to be the bearer of bad news for Star Wars fans, but I don't think that's going to happen.

If only I could tell you what I've heard about the behind the scenes of this project. I've sworn to secrecy and it kills me not to talk about it, but I'm pretty sure some things will come out eventually.

What I will say is that Steven Knight has been trying to decipher the storyline for over a year. A final version has still not been submitted to LucasFilm. Knight, who is about to shoot his film “Peaky Blinders,” wrote a total of four drafts, with LucasFilm's Kathleen Kennedy continually giving him notes on how to improve the story.

These issues with Knight come just two years into development of the film, and various drafts had circulated, with different writers including Damon Lindelof (“Watchmen”) and Justin Brit-Gibson having a go at it, before both ultimately left the project due to creative differences.

There's also another issue: Disney may question the very nature of the project. Will they allow this movie to go ahead or not? Do we really need another Rey movie? Plot details have been kept under wraps, but from what I've heard, the film will reportedly focus on Rey's tutelage at an academy for up-and-coming Jedi – part of Rey's attempt to build a new Jedi order.

Disney/LucasFilm hired a documentary filmmaker (Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy) to direct the Rey movie, and she was quick to stress that when she joined the project, her goal, and Disney's goal, was to shape a female character into the future of the Star Wars franchise.

Hasn’t a female character already shaped the franchise? Rey was clearly the protagonist of the last trilogy, with mixed results, and for some reason they decided to return to her for this next series of films. You would think that after the mixed response to this trilogy, Disney might want to retire Rey's character.

Either way, it's clear that this won't be Disney's next Star Wars movie. In case you've lost count, there are seven Star Wars films currently in development, from directors Obaid-Chimoy, James Mangold, Dave Filoni, Jon Favreau, Donald Glover, Shawn Levy and Patty Jenkins. Which will come first? Most likely “The Mandalorian and Grogu” by Jon Favreau, which is scheduled to film this year.