Next Theatrical ‘Star Wars’ Release
January 2020
By Nick Wager
After just directing two episodes of The Mandalorian in 2019, Rick Ramuyiwa is set to make Star Wars history on the Kevin Fiege backed film coming to theaters in 2022. Ramuyiwa, a Nigerian-American filmmaker known for such films as Dope and Brown Sugar will be the first person of color to direct a feature-length theatrical Star Wars film.
We discovered Kevin Fiege had an interest in making a Star Wars film back in September of 2019, knowing that it would likely be one of Kathleen Kennedy’s final productions before she leaves Lucasfilm behind. Ever since there has been an air of anticipation, with many wondering exactly what this means for Star Wars and who they would get to direct this film, which is said to herald in a new era of Star Wars theatrical films.
At long last, Lucasfilm has confirmed all speculation: Filmmaker Rick Ramuyiwa will be the writer and the director of the yet to be titled Kevin Fiege produced Star Wars film, expected to hit theaters in 2022.
This can mean any number of things for the Star Wars universe at large. Of course, we do not know the era during which the Ramuyiwa/Fiege film will take place, but we can extrapolate some things we can see from the film based on the two men behind this production. We know Fiege is a master of the grandiose while also keeping continuity and realism in perspective. This can only mean good things for a new Star Wars flick. As for Ramuyiwa, aside from the added perspective we get from a first-generation American and son of Nigerian immigrants, we get his unique style of filmmaking. Even just looking at Dope from 2015, we see that Ramuyiwa has a firm hold on the line between comic relief and heavy drama, as well as his incredible understanding of the coming-of-age story, which likens back to much of what George Lucas always had to say about Star Wars in general, that it was about finding your way in a larger galaxy.
We cannot be happier with this decision from Lucasfilm. Ramuyiwa has an inspired outlook on storytelling. His handling of character-work and emotion is on a level that rivals Lucas himself. With Marvel veteran, Kevin Fiege at his side, I believe that this next trip in our favorite galaxy of adventures and heroes will be something not to be missed.
