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Ryan Gosling Reportedly in Talks to Lead Shawn Levy’s Untitled Star Wars Movie

In the years since the 2019 release of the painfully middling Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker, Disney were clearly unsure of where next to take the silver screen iterations of Star Wars following the conclusion of the “Skywalker saga.” During this period multiple projects were announced but eventually cancelled, including a film produced by Marvel’s Kevin Feige and – even more notably – a trilogy by Game of Thrones creators and showrunners which was abandoned in 2019 when the duo signed with Netlfix, and it certainly seemed that this was Disney’s initial answer to the conclusion of original nine-movie saga.

This is not to say that Kathleen Kennedy and others behind the franchise have been resting on their laurels, since Star Wars has instead focused on the television sphere, producing some truly brilliant TV shows that include The Mandalorian, Andor, and their latest release Skeleton Crew. However, just last year the Mouse House showed a renewed focus on producing feature films for the franchise, first announcing The Mandalorian & Grogu in January, which will be helmed by the creator of the original series, Jon Favreau. This was later followed by the reveal of three further films each dealing with different time periods in the history of a galaxy far, far away, which are set to be directed by James Mangold, Dave Filoni, and Oscar-winning Canadian-Pakistani filmmaker, the latter of whom is reportedly making a solo film about Rey (Daisy Ridley). Even Patty Jenkins’ Rogue Squadron, which had previously been cancelled, is back in the works, with Jenkins herself confirming that she has resumed work on the project.

Another of the productions revealed last year was an untitled project from Canadian filmmaker Shawn Levy, who is perhaps best known most recently for his work with Ryan Reynolds, which includes Free Guy, The Adam Project, and of course Deadpool & Wolverine. What came as a surprise last week, though, is that he is looking to secure another Canadian Ryan, in this case Gosling, to lead his mysterious project, which is rumoured to be the next release for Disney after The Mandalorian & Grogu comes out on May 22nd, 2026

Little is otherwise known about the project, and Levy has vowed to remain tight-lipped for the time being, saying at a Deadpool & Wolverine event, “I definitely can’t share anything…. I have been so well trained by Stranger Things and Marvel that my lips are sealed.” We do at least know that a script has been written by frequent Levy collaborator Jonathan Tropper, but the setting and focus of the story is entirely unknown, though he has shed some light on where he would like to go with his own Star Wars entry, telling the Happy Sad Confused podcast last August, “There’s only so many times that Star Wars movies can revisit the same section of the timeline. I don’t want to do a Star Wars movie that is redundant to others, nor am I interested in doing one that has to serve another movie.”

Yet, it is Gosling’s potential casting that is most curious, as Star Wars is a franchise known for casting lesser-known actors in central roles, or at least no one with his sheer star power. While neither Gosling’s casting, nor the movie itself, are a sure thing as of yet, with Levy even noting at the Deadpool & Wolverine event that “One never knows if development reaches the starting gate,” this type of casting might hint at how big Disney is looking to go with Star Wars’ long-awaited return to the big screen. We should learn more about this particular project in the coming months.

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