Jon Watts to Direct First Film in Simon Kinberg’s New Star Wars Trilogy

Jon Watts, director of the Tom Holland Spider-Man trilogy, has been chosen to direct the first film in a new Star Wars trilogy written by Simon Kinberg. The Hollywood Reporter and TheWrap reported the news simultaneously.

Lucasfilm has not officially announced Watts’s hiring and declined to comment on the reports. As a result, details about the project, including its plot, cast and production timeline, remain unofficial.

For Watts, this marks a return to the Star Wars universe. Together with Christopher Ford, he created the series Star Wars: Skeleton Crew and directed several of its episodes.

It’s too early to call the film “Episode X”

News of Simon Kinberg’s new trilogy first surfaced in November 2024. He is writing and producing all three films.

The main uncertainty still centers on whether the trilogy will continue the main Skywalker Saga. Initially, some sources said the films could effectively become Episodes X–XII and pick up after The Rise of Skywalker.

Other sources claimed the opposite — that Kinberg was developing a standalone new story with different central characters. That was the version Reuters reported in 2024.

The Hollywood Reporter’s latest piece again ties the project to a continuation of the story after the ninth episode, but Lucasfilm has not publicly confirmed this. So for now it’s more accurate to talk about the first film in a new trilogy rather than an official “Episode X.”

That’s especially true given that Lucasfilm itself called The Rise of Skywalker the conclusion of the nine-film Skywalker Saga back in 2019.

Rey may appear in the new trilogy

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Daisy Ridley’s Rey is being considered for an appearance in Kinberg’s trilogy, though the size of her role is not yet known.

This isn’t the first time the character has been linked to future films in the franchise. In 2023, Lucasfilm officially announced a separate film from director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy in which Ridley was to return as Rey.

That project was to be set after The Rise of Skywalker, with the character building a new Jedi Order.

The fate of Obaid-Chinoy’s film, however, is now unclear. It spent a long time in development and went through several writers, and Lucasfilm has not explained how it will coexist with Kinberg’s new trilogy or whether the two projects’ concepts overlap.

The film has no release date yet

No premiere date has been announced for the first film in Kinberg’s trilogy. Neither the start of production nor the cast has been confirmed.

It also isn’t the only major Star Wars film project in development. Lucasfilm previously officially confirmed Star Wars: Starfighter from Shawn Levy, starring Ryan Gosling, which is set roughly five years after The Rise of Skywalker.

So even if Watts’s film does continue the franchise’s main timeline, it won’t necessarily be the next Star Wars theatrical release.