Star Wars Celebration, the Official Star Wars convention, has officially kicked off in Tokyo, and Lucasfilm opened up with some big news! The opening panel for the convention, listed as “The Mandalorian and Grogu” promised a closer look at the upcoming film featuring the title characters due for release next summer. The panel now seen across the world and all over the internet began not only a behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming film from filmmakers Dave Filioni and Jon Faveru with star Pedro Pascal and Grogu himself taking the stage but it also previewed the future of Star Wars on the big screen for years to come.
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A part of the preview from the panel focused on the future of Star Wars as the franchise returns to the big screen. The huge surprise to come out of the panel following the presentation of The Mandalorian and Grogu himself was the announcement of Ryan Gosling himself coming to the Star Wars universe. Ryan Gosling is the Starfighter, he will be starring in a new film about about a starfighter from the galaxy of Star Wars. Released after the panel was a press release detailing the announcements about the upcoming film and the team bringing it to a galaxy far far away.
“Ryan Gosling is joining the Star Wars galaxy in a new film directed by Shawn Levy.
Levy, who recently directed and produced Marvel’s hit Deadpool & Wolverine, made a surprise appearance during The Mandalorian and Grogu panel today, joining Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy and chief creative officer Dave Filoni on stage to confirm his project for the live audience at Star Wars Celebration Japan.
One of several theatrical projects still in development from Lucasfilm, including films by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, James Mangold, Taika Waititi, and a new trilogy by Simon Kinberg, Levy’s film, Star Wars: Starfighter, will star Gosling and go into production starting this fall.
Set approximately five years after the events of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Gosling will play a brand-new character teased by the actor’s appearance on stage.
Star Wars: Starfighter arrives in theaters on Memorial Day 2027.”
If we are to follow the press release, that would mean that Star Wars: Starfighter will release fifty years after the original film. Star Wars: Starfighter will release fifty years after “Star Wars: A New Hope” came to theaters, releasing in 1977, the original movie gave birth to all the movies and tv shows that now make up the Star Wars legacy. The film releasing fifty years after the original film and the release marking the celebration of a new lead Star Wars character coming to the big screen and that lead being Ryan Gosling, this can only be possible with this new era of Lucasfilm that begun with the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens ten years ago this year.
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In between that time, there have been five Star Wars films released on the big screen and another five years of Disney+ original shows and projects set in a Galaxy Far Far Away. One of those projects the hit show “The Mandalorian,” will be coming to the big screen with the title character leading his own film with his famous friend, Grogu. This film coming to theaters sets a new expectation that Star Wars characters from Disney+ originals can make it to the big screen. Only the opposite has been true with characters returning from the big screen of Star Wars returning for a second life to star in Disney+ projects, characters like Andor, Kenobi, and Boba Fett all with their names featured in the titles of their popular shows.
The Mandalorian has, since its inception, become a fan favorite—and now, all eyes are on Ryan Gosling’s Starfighter, with hopes it will soar just as high as the story of Grogu’s mysterious father figure. Director Shawn Levy, fresh off helping Disney and Marvel Studios rake in over $1 billion worldwide with Deadpool & Wolverine, now faces the challenge of delivering not just for the studio, but for Star Wars fans hungry for something fresh. Gosling’s appearance on stage at Star Wars Celebration 2025 was more than enough to send fans into hyperspace-level excitement. And with the announcement of additional upcoming Star Wars films, it feels like we’re entering a new era—a true “New Hope” for the franchise on the big screen. Stay tuned for more Star Wars Celebration 2025 coverage, and stick with Who Let Us Out for the latest from a galaxy far, far away.
