A high-ranking Lucasfilm executive issued a statement about the future of Star Wars animation amid uncertainty about the brand. Since Star Wars: Clone Wars debuted in 2008, there has always been an animated Star Wars series to look forward to. Even when there were no movies to look forward to, the now Lucasfilm Chief Creative Officer Dave Filoni and the team at Lucasfilm Animation were there with some space-faring adventure for fans to enjoy.
The team's prolific output has since slowed, and the future of animated Star Wars is more uncertain than ever. With no ongoing mainstays like Clone Wars, Rebels, or The Bad Batch on the horizon, it is unclear what Lucasfilm has planned for its animation vertical.
Luckily for fans, Filoni teased them that Star Wars animation is going nowhere.
Speaking as part of a special message to promote 20 years of Lucasfilm Animation at San Diego Comic-Con, Filoni revealed that Star Wars creator George Lucas "always believed in animation" and hopes to continue to do it for "20 more [years]."
The complete statement from Filoni reads as follows (via GamesRadar):
"I thought my job at Lucasfilm Animation would last about two years - it has now been 20. This is truly possible because of the incredible dedication and hard work of the many talented people who have worked at Lucasfilm Animation. Fans have embraced our work in a way that no one could have predicted – well, maybe one person did. George Lucas always believed in animation and believed in our team. He said, 'Dare to be great,' and that's what we've done for the last 20 years. I hope we do it for 20 more."
Lucasfilm Animation will return to streaming next year with the release of Maul: Shadow Lord, a new animated series centered around the villainous Darth Maul and his adventures post-Order 66. Elsewhere on the animated front, this year will see the release of Star Wars: Visions Season 3 (a new season of out-of-canon anime Star Wars stories) and LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy - Pieces of the Past.
What's Next for Star Wars Animation?
While the future of Star Wars animation might be more unclear than ever, it is exciting to hear that Dave Filoni and the Lucasfilm team still see the franchise's animated fare as valuable and something they continue to want to pursue.
The next major project from the Lucasfilm Animation team is 2026's Maul: Shadow Lord. The new series is the latest project in the Star Wars: Clone Wars lineage, picking up the Clone Wars story after Order 66 and following the saber-slinging Darth Maul.
Beyond that, though, the future of Star Wars animation is a massive question mark. The franchise now has no staple series to hang its hat on like it previously did.
There have been rumors that the Lucasfilm Animation team is working away on something, though, potentially being the next multi-season Star Wars series, following in the footsteps of Rebels and Clone Wars.
Perhaps, that new series will pick up the pieces left behind by The Bad Batch Season 3, following the young Omega as she joins the Rebellion. Or maybe it could jump a little further down the timeline, telling a story set firmly during the events of the Original Trilogy (like what Clone Wars was to the Prequels).
