This April, three new Star Wars films were announced at Star Wars Celebration in London, England, capping off a years long silence from Lucasfilm on the theatrical front of the franchise. The one that appears to be furthest along in its development is the New Jedi Order film starring Daisy Ridley, reprising her role as Rey Skywalker for the first time since 2019 in The Rise of Skywalker. It is, however, reportedly not a Star Wars Episode X. The film supposedly acts as a followup with the lead hero, but not in the Skywalker Saga continuum. The film is set to be directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, a Canadian-Pakistani filmmaker who previously helmed documentaries as well episodes of Ms. Marvel.
Not much is known about the film besides that, including whether Ridley’s costars from the sequel trilogy like John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Kelly Marie Tran, or Naomi Ackie will be brought back into the fold. This mystery extends to the threat of the movie. The identity of the villain (or villains) will be remains uncertain. However, it’s likely that there will be a continuation of the Dark Side threat in some form, albeit altered after the defeat of Palpatine and the Sith on Exegol.
The uncertainty regarding what Rey Skywalker will be facing in the new movie is due to the fact that the Skywalker Saga concluded with the ultimate evil being defeated. Palpatine’s demise effectively ended the Sith. While there are still most likely remnants of the First Order around the galaxy, that doesn’t pose enough of a threat to bring Rey back in this way. In general, the stakes must remain high, even after the Sith are gone, so the writers will have to find a way to keep the proceedings intense throughout.
The team writing the new Rey film has gone through a bit of a shake up in recent months. Damon Lindelof was originally attached to the project, but eventually exited. Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight was quickly hired to put the finishing touches on the script. Now, the status of this project is a little unclear, particularly with the presence of the writer’s strike that is naturally causing delays to upcoming movies and shows.
Ultimately, the most likely outcome for the villain of the new movie is a dark side Force user who is not a Sith Lord. That’s very similar to what Kylo Ren was, and JJ Abrams and co. found a creative way of continuing the dark side villains without going back on the Chosen One prophecy that was introduced in the prequel trilogy. The Chosen One prophecy is arguably the biggest obstacle to the development of any new film post-Skywalker Saga because of its definitive nature. The Sith are supposed to be gone, but the story's continuation rests on a new villain. That new enemy has to have the same general presence of the original evil, but also has to beunique in key ways.
That’s why Kylo Ren developed the way he was: as a villain who didn’t belong to the Sith. He was his own entity, distant from his grandfather Darth Vader, but still very much in his shadow (and he certainly admired him). It’s unlikely that the writers will opt for another Vader successor like Kylo Ren. More likely, the villain will be unique, separate from the past (just as the story is moving beyond the Skywalker Saga).
The dynamic of the galaxy will also most likely be different from the sequels, where the First Order was the dominant force. Now, it’s likely that the New Republic will be the main government in the galaxy, with the threat from the villains slowly rising, just like during the prequel trilogy. This all goes along with what Maz Kanata told Rey directly in Episode VII, stating that evil rises and takes different forms but is still the same darkness nonetheless.
Recent shakeups to the Disney theatrical release calendar mean that this New Jedi Order film won’t come out in December 2025, as it was originally scheduled to. Instead, an untitled Star Wars project was moved to May 2026. This is likely to be the Daisy Ridley movie as it’s the one that is farthest along in development. There’s also a movie scheduled for December 026, which would mean two films set in a galaxy far, far away coming out in the same calendar year.
If that ends up coming to fruition, the December film is likely to be Dave Filoni’s feature debut, which is the MandoVerse finale movie that has been teased since late 2020. After years of little to no information regarding upcoming Star Wars movies, with the focus solely on Disney+, things are now moving on the theatrical front. It seems like this iconic franchise will be back on the big screen again soon.