Taika Waititi To Direct Next Star Wars Film

This is... a lot more than acceptable.

Hot on the heels of starring in and directing the finale of The Mandalorian, it looks as though Taika Waititi could be heading back to the galaxy far, far away. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Lucasfilm are actively courting Waititi to helm a Star Wars movie in the near future, fresh off his latest film, Jojo Rabbit, garnering six nominations at the 92nd Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Waititi is an obvious choice for Star Wars, given his familiarity with Disney. The filmmaker helmed one of the most popular films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2017's Thor: Ragnarok, and is currently set to return to direct the sequel, Thor: Love and Thunder.

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As THR also note, it's highly likely that Waititi's time spent on the set of The Mandalorian will has encouraged Lucasfilm to secure his services for a future Star Wars film. Their report mentions how the show is being seen as a "testing ground" for filmmakers hoping to take on a more sizeable role in the franchise, with Deborah Chow having been given the keys to helm the Obi-Wan Kenobi TV show after directing several of The Mandalorian's best received episodes. So who knows - maybe Jon Favreau or Dave Filoni could be heading to the big screen next.

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Something else that's interesting to note is that the report mentions Waititi's film could be related to Kevin Feige's Star Wars project, which was revealed last September. When taken together with those rumours that Lucasfilm are taking Star Wars to the 'High Republic' - something many believe will see the franchise shift from a trilogy format to something more akin to the MCU - it may be possible that Waititi and Feige will preside over the first entries of Star Wars' new era.

THR also provided a brief update on the status of Rian Johnson's Star Wars trilogy. The Last Jedi director mentioned to Variety this week that he's "still talking" to Lucasfilm about the project, but this latest report seems to confirm that any future Star Wars films from Johnson will probably arrive after he's completed production on a sequel to Knives Out. Waititi may also have scheduling conflicts of his own, with Thor, Next Goal Wins and an already delayed adaptation of Akira all on his plate.

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Either way, while Lucasfilm and Disney couldn't be reached for comment, Waititi himself may have responded, having posted the album cover for Fleetwood Mac's 'Rumours' album on his Twitter just this morning. Here's hoping it's a sign THR aren't far off the mark with their article.

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Do you want to see Waititi direct more Star Wars? Let us know in the comments below!

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Resident movie guy at WhatCulture who used to be Comics Editor. Thinks John Carpenter is the best. Likes Hellboy a lot. Can usually be found talking about Dad Movies on his Twitter at @EwanRuinsThings.