Disney hot-shot Jon Favreau has been announced by Lucasfilm as spearheading a live-action Star Wars series. Jon will write and produce while giving “a group of diverse writers and directors” an open door to jump into the Star Wars universe.
A huge nod to those critical of the lack of female/POC directors given the chance to tackle the material, this series can allow multiple new voices to explore the mythology.
It remains to be seen if this is a version of George Lucas’ Underworld series which had been likened to Deadwood-in-space. However, it will be made for Disney’s upcoming streaming platform which had been teased by Disney’s Bob Iger recently.
Jon is no stranger to the franchise as he voiced a Mandalorian character in The Clone Wars and will be playing a CGI character in Solo: A Star Wars Story.
He’s also part of the team that ushered in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the idea of post-credit scenes (like them or not). Not to mention, his live-action Jungle Book movie placed an Asian-American actor at the front of a major studio blockbuster and has given Disney the nudge it needed to pursue more live-action remakes of their classic animated films. His next film is a live-action version of The Lion King.
It doesn’t hurt his extensive background working with the effects-heavy projects could help become a huge asset when dealing with a television budget and limitations. I suspect Favreau might be taking a role similar to Larry Kasdan on the television side of the franchise, but we’ll have to wait and see if he’ll be involved in other shows as well.
Considering that Lucasfilm picked up the showrunners of Game of Thrones to oversee a string of Star Wars films, it wouldn’t terribly shocking to see filming of this series possibly taking place at Paint Hall Studios in Belfast, Northern Ireland (already rumblings the stage space could be used in the future) where Thrones was mostly filmed. The facilities are big enough and also close enough to Lucasfilm headquarters at Pinewood UK.
Below is the full press release.
Lucasfilm is excited to announce that Emmy-nominated producer and actor Jon Favreau has signed on to executive produce and write a live-action Star Wars series for Disney’s new direct-to-consumer platform. Favreau is no stranger to the Star Wars galaxy having played roles in both the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series and in the upcoming Solo: A Star Wars Story.
“I couldn’t be more excited about Jon coming on board to produce and write for the new direct-to-consumer platform,” says Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. “Jon brings the perfect mix of producing and writing talent, combined with a fluency in the Star Wars universe. This series will allow Jon the chance to work with a diverse group of writers and directors and give Lucasfilm the opportunity to build a robust talent base.”
Favreau is thrilled to be returning to the Star Wars galaxy: “If you told me at 11 years old that I would be getting to tell stories in the Star Wars universe, I wouldn’t have believed you. I can’t wait to embark upon this exciting adventure.”
Disney’s collaborations with Favreau extend back a decade, when he helped launch the Marvel Cinematic Universe as director of Iron Man and Iron Man 2 and as an executive producer of the Iron Man and Avengers films for Marvel Studios. For Disney, he directed and produced the massively successful The Jungle Book, which won an Academy Award for its groundbreaking visual effects. He is currently in production on Disney’s highly anticipated reimagining of The Lion King, set for release in 2019.
The untitled Star Wars live-action series does not yet have a release date.
SOURCE: LUCASFILM