Lucasfilm reportedly canceled a major Star Wars Disney+ series that was originally planned as a theatrical movie. Back in 2020, Lucasfilm announced Rogue Squadron as the next Star Wars movie, directed by Wonder Woman filmmaker Patty Jenkins. The movie was planned for release at Christmas 2023 and was set to introduce a new generation of fighter pilots after the events of the sequel trilogy. Development stalled as Jenkins was busy with Wonder Woman 3 and Cleopatra (neither of which saw the light of day), leading to her exit from Rogue Squadron. The filmmaker would ultimately return to Rogue Squadron when her DC threequel was abandoned, although the movie still never got off the ground.
Reports later revealed that Rogue Squadron was being revived as a big-budget Disney+ series, with no word on whether Jenkins was still involved. While that gave fans hope that they might one day see Star Wars' take on Top Gun after all, those dreams have been dashed once again by a new report.
According to a Knight Edge Media report on Rogue Squadron's storied troubles, the Star Wars blockbuster was indeed being redeveloped as a Disney+ series. However, the project ultimately "fell apart" at Lucasfilm and was shelved, becoming Star Wars' fifth streaming venture to be canceled.
Knight Edge Media stated that Rick Famuyiwa (who directed six episodes of The Mandalorian) was developing the Rogue Squadron show with Rayna McClendon (who was a consulting producer on Obi-Wan Kenobi). The Wrap revealed in January that Famuyiwa was once developing a Star Wars show that ultimately became stuck in "limbo," though it made no mention of Rogue Squadron.
Interestingly, The Mandalorian creators Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni were attached to produce this version of Rogue Squadron. The fighter-pilot Disney+ series would have taken place within the MandoVerse timeline, marking a major pivot from Jenkins' take, which was set after the sequel trilogy.
Interestingly, the report noted that the Rogue Squadron show began life under the working title Ghost Track 17 in late 2022. That becomes a little confusing, as Patty Jenkins told HBO Max's Talking Pictures Podcast in March 2024 that she had sealed a new deal to pen Rogue Squadron right as the Hollywood writers' strike began in 2023, and that she still "[owed] a draft" of the movie then.
That would indicate that Lucasfilm was either developing both theatrical and Disney+ versions of Rogue Squadron simultaneously, or that Famuyiwa's take was in development for less than a year before the studio returned to Jenkins in 2023.
Star Wars' Other 5 Canceled Live-Action Disney+ Shows
Rangers of the New Republic
Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy announced multiple new Star Wars projects at Disney Investor Day 2020, including multiple The Mandalorian spin-offs. One of those MandoVerse expansions was Rangers of the New Republic, a series that was later revealed to star Gina Carano's Cara Dune from the flagship show.
Following Carano's firing from Star Wars due to a series of controversial tweets, Kennedy confirmed that Rangers of the New Republic had been shelved. The former Lucasfilm figurehead noted that no scripts were written for Rangers of the New Republic and that its planned storylines would be used in The Mandalorian.
Lando
The Disney Investor Day presentation would prove to be a misstep for Lucasfilm as it featured a whopping six projects that would never see the light of day. Another of those projects was Lando, a Disney+ spin-off to Solo: A Star Wars Story that was expected to center around Donald Glover's Lando Calrissian.
Ultimately, Lando was retooled as a big-screen blockbuster instead of a Disney+ series, with Glover and his brother Stephen Glover penning the script. As updates on the flick have been scarce, most fans seem to agree that it will be abandoned altogether as Lucasfilm is now prioritizing a new trilogy on the movie front.
The Mandalorian
Lucasfilm delivered its first live-action Star Wars show, The Mandalorian, in 2019, followed by two further seasons in 2020 and 2023. The story just recently went theatrical in this summer's The Mandalorian and Grogu, replacing the planned Season 4 that Jon Favreau had already written.
It's unclear what the future holds for the space-faring duo after The Mandalorian and Grogu flopped spectacularly at the box office and became the lowest-grossing movie yet from the galaxy far, far away. Regardless, Lucasfilm has seemingly confirmed that The Mandalorian in its Disney+ form is over.
Skeleton Crew
Despite stellar reviews from critics and support from those who watched, Skeleton Crew became Star Wars' least-watched live-action show. The series takes place in the MandoVerse timeline and follows four kids trying to find their way home across the galaxy, encountering pirates and Jude Law's Jedi con artist Jod Na Nawood.
Disney+ never formally canceled Skeleton Crew; the Amblin-inspired show simply never returned, despite prior planning for Season 2. As writer, director, and co-creator Jon Watts is now committed to helming the first installment in Star Wars' next movie trilogy, it's safe to say that Skeleton Crew is dead in the water, although Jude Law's character could still return in other upcoming projects.
The Acolyte
The Acolyte hit Disney+ in 2024 as Star Wars' first live-action venture into the High Republic era, although it quickly proved controversial with fans. The big-budget epic was ultimately canceled just months after airing due to the "cost structure" as its viewership failed to justify the massive price tag of over $200 million.
The cancellation means that The Acolyte's major cliffhanger, which featured Darth Plagueis' live-action debut and set up Yoda's return, will go unresolved. There have since been a number of tie-in books to The Acolyte, so it isn't out of the question that its storyline could one day be resolved on the page.
