Rumors that Lucasfilm’s longtime president may be leaving Disney have swirled for quite some time. But reports that Kathleen Kennedy will retire at the end of her contract may be jumping the gun.
Puck reported Tuesday that Kennedy, who is 71, is expected to step down as president of the storied production company behind the “Star Wars” franchise before the end of 2025. Several news publishers have followed with their own reports. But a source familiar with the matter tells CNN that’s not the case, emphasizing that “there’s nothing there right now.” Any announcement of Kennedy’s retirement, if indeed there’s anything to announce, will be made “public” when “actual decisions are made,” the source told CNN.
Lucasfilm did not respond to a request for comment and a spokesperson for Disney did not comment for this story.
Kennedy joined Lucasfilm in 2012 as co-chair alongside George Lucas before being named president shortly after Lucas parted ways with the company following Disney’s $4-billion acquisition of the company the same year.
Kennedy has been hailed for rejuvenating the “Star Wars” franchise after she helped launch the latest trilogy in the “Star Wars” universe. While the three installments of the sequel trilogy were massive successes at the domestic box office, the movies were plagued with diminishing returns, with 2015’s “The Force Awakens” from J.J. Abrams pulling in just over $936 million, followed by $620 million for 2018’s “The Last Jedi,” and $515 million for 2019’s “Rise of Skywalker.” Still, the three sequel movies pulled in more domestically than any of the three prequel films.
Under Kennedy, Lucasfilm released a new “Star Wars” movie every year from 2015 to 2019, though these likewise were met with mixed success. Where critics heaped praise on Lucasfilm’s 2016 “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” which nabbed over $532 million at the domestic box office, they were less kind with the company’s 2018 “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” which made a humble $213 million domestically. “Solo,” whose budget was at least $250 million, to say nothing of its pricey marketing campaign, was also the first “Star Wars” movie to lose money.
Still, as “Star Wars” movies saw diminishing returns on the silver screen, Lucasfilm pivoted to focus on streaming, debuting its first season of “The Mandalorian” on Disney+ in November 2019 just as Disney’s streaming platform launched. Since then, Lucasfilm has put out five other live-action shows, including two more “Mandalorian” seasons, “The Book of Boba Fett,” “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” and “Ahsoka.”
While not all of Lucasfilm’s series have achieved acclaim — “The Acolyte” was canceled in August after just one season and mixed reviews — the company recently released a trailer for the much-anticipated second season of “Andor,” which is set to premiere on Disney+ on April 22.
Making the most of the streaming success of “The Mandalorian,” Lucasfilm in 2024 announced it was working on a feature installment of the series, “The Mandalorian and Grogu” from Jon Favreau, its first movie release since 2019.
