Star Wars: Starfighter bears the distinct mark of a ‘spiritual sequel’ to two previously canceled projects, Rogue Squadron and Rangers of the New Republic.
Lucasfilm recently announced the new film project, Star Wars: Starfighter, at the Star Wars Celebration 2025 event.
This will be the next Star Wars film to be released after The Mandalorian and Grogu, scheduled for 2026.
Directed by Shawn Levy and starring Ryan Gosling, Star Wars: Starfighter is currently in pre-production and is expected to begin filming this fall.
While this news excites fans, this isn’t the first time the Star Wars universe has introduced a project centered around pilots and spaceships.
According to Screen Rant, Star Wars: Starfighter reminds many of two previously announced Star Wars projects with high expectations, which were then repeatedly delayed or canceled.
In that context, Star Wars: Starfighter is Disney and Lucasfilm’s way of atoning for past disappointments and regaining the trust of the fan community in recent years.
Lucasfilm had previously shelved Rogue Squadron and Rangers of the New Republic.
In 2020, Lucasfilm announced the Star Wars: Rogue Squadron project, written and directed by Patty Jenkins.
The project came with an emotional trailer from Jenkins herself, and a December 2023 release date was set.
The film was expected to usher in a new generation of fighter pilots in the Star Wars universe, as they earned their wings and risked their lives in a breathtaking, high-speed, adventurous race.
Although inspired by the novels and games of the same name, the 2023 Rogue Squadron was planned as an entirely new story, once described as “Star Wars’ version of Top Gun.” However, the project was delayed due to Jenkins’ busy filming schedule and was eventually removed from Lucasfilm’s production list.
According to Variety, in 2023, many sources reported that the film was canceled, although Lucasfilm hinted that they might shift to a series.
In early 2024, director Patty Jenkins revealed she had signed a new contract to continue developing Rogue Squadron, but since then no further specific information has been released, leading many to believe the project was quietly abandoned.
Meanwhile, Forbes magazine reported that another project that was also canceled was the Rangers of the New Republic series, a spin-off of The Mandalorian, also announced in 2020.
After Lucasfilm and Disney fired Gina Carano – the actress who played Cara Dune – this project was quickly halted.
Some content elements intended for Rangers of the New Republic were later incorporated into subsequent episodes of The Mandalorian. However, the series was initially expected to revolve around the pilots of the Adelphi Rangers – similar to Starfighter.
The cancellation of both projects further fueled fan belief that Star Wars: Starfighter was Lucasfilm’s way of making up for lost opportunities, especially for fans who loved the spectacular aerial battles in the Star Wars universe.
Expectations for Star Wars: Starfighter
As of now, Star Wars: Starfighter has been greenlit and filming is scheduled to begin this fall, with a planned theatrical release on May 28, 2027.
Starfighter will be a standalone story, set several years after the events of The Rise of Skywalker.
The film is confirmed to focus primarily on entirely new characters, although there’s also a possibility of some familiar characters from the sequel trilogy making appearances.
Additionally, there have been recent rumors that actress Mikey Madison (who recently won Best Actress for Anora at the 2025 Oscars) was offered a role in Starfighter but declined.
While the specific plot details remain largely undisclosed, the title alone evokes a world teeming with pilots, squadrons, and spaceships – something Star Wars fans have always longed for.
Fortunately, with director Shawn Levy and actor Ryan Gosling at the helm, Starfighter appears to be a serious step from Disney and Lucasfilm, fulfilling a promise made nearly five years ago – a grand film centered around pilots from a galaxy far, far away.
Interestingly, the title Starfighter is also the name of a video game released in 2001 on PS2 and Xbox – similar to how Rogue Squadron was inspired by the game of the same name.
With a promising creative team and the return of the galactic aerial combat theme, Star Wars: Starfighter promises to be a notable highlight of Star Wars in 2027.
Before Star Wars Celebration 2025, some fans still hoped that Rogue Squadron would have a chance to be revived.
However, with the announcement of Starfighter, it can almost be confirmed that Lucasfilm has chosen to move forward. It’s hard to imagine the studio developing two projects simultaneously focusing on the space pilot theme.
