Lucasfilm has gone all-in on its existing franchises – such as Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Willow – at the expense of various other potential blockbusters.
The Hollywood Reporter has detailed how the Disney-owned studio decided to drop its adaptation of Children of Blood and Bone, a fantasy novel by Tomi Adeyemi, which was being positioned as a new mega-franchise. Plans for a trilogy were later scrapped by Lucasfilm, with Paramount picking up the project.
The report reveals how the studio's head Kathleen Kennedy initially took an interest in Children of Blood and Bone after Disney bought Fox, which owned the film rights. Rick Famuyiwa, a director on The Mandalorian, was attached as a director. However, the project stalled as Lucasfilm bosses' attention turned to the growing Star Wars slate, including Mandalorian, Book of Boba Fett, and many more to come.
After a long-gestating production period and the author Adeyemi wanting input on the script, Children of Blood and Bone was purchased by Paramount. According to THR's sources, Lucasfilm has "decidedly shifted away from developing projects that are new and is leaning even more toward those already under its umbrella."
That includes "many, many" more new Star Wars movies and shows, like *deep breath* the delayed Star Wars: Rogue Squadron from Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins, a movie from Taika Waititi, another from Marvel maestro Kevin Feige, a film by Sleight director J.D. Dillard, and Rian Johnson's long-awaited trilogy. Those are just the feature-length adventures – there are reportedly 10 TV shows in development. Phew. Lucasfilm also has a Willow series heading to Disney Plus and Indiana Jones 5, though the latter has been delayed.
