Kathleen Kennedy’s Lucasfilm reign has come to an end as the longtime producer and executive announced Thursday she’s stepping down as president after 14 years.
Current Lucasfilm EVP and Chief Creative Officer Dave Filoni will become president and chief creative officer of Lucasfilm in the shakeup, and current President and General Manager of Lucasfilm Business Lynwen Brennan was named co-president. Both will report to Disney Co-Chairman Alan Bergman.
Kennedy’s Lucasfilm exit has been in the works for some time, and Filoni and Brennan’s status as veteran senior leaders at Lucasfilm who have worked closely with the executive from the time she came on board in 2012 helps ensure a smooth transition.
A hand-picked successor to George Lucas, Kennedy joined Lucasfilm in 2012, just months before Disney acquired the company for $4 billion. Since then, she has overseen the company’s most ambitious expansion since its formation in 1971.
During her tenure as Lucasfilm president, Kennedy oversaw the production of five theatrical “Star Wars” films — including the sequel trilogy starring Daisy Ridley and the standalone films “Rogue One” and “Solo” — as well “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” became the highest-grossing domestic film of all time with $936 million at the U.S. box office and more than $2 billion worldwide. The five theatrical “Star Wars” films have grossed $5.9 billion worldwide.
Next up, Kennedy has “The Mandalorian and Grogu” opening May 22 and Shawn Levy’s “Starfighter” starring Ryan Gosling opening May 28, 2027 — both of which Kennedy will produce. She is also producing the new animated series “Maul: Shadow Lord,” a second season of “Ahsoka,” and a number of films and series in development.
The expansion of “Star Wars” to television is largely credited to Kennedy, with hit streaming series like “The Mandalorian” (the first-ever live-action “Star Wars” series), the Emmy-winning “Andor” and more — some to more success than others. (“Willow,” for instance, lasted a single season and has since been scrubbed from Disney+.)
For Lucasfilm theme parks, Kennedy oversaw the opening of the 14-acre Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge immersive land at Disneyland and Walt Disney World and the opening of Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, an immersive experience that mixed the sensation of a live-action role playing game with a cruise on land. Hugely expensive, the Galactic Starcruiser closed in 2023 just over a year after opening.
Kennedy’s tenure at the company has been one of ambition and controversy. As she tried to chart new territory in a galaxy far, far away and serve her corporate decision-makers, she frequently waded into fan unrest. Attempting to sum up her time at Lucasfilm is difficult and troublesome, met with some historic highs and almost subterranean lows.
But through it all, she never gave up. When the Empirical forces attempted to squash her, she always resisted.
“She knows or knew what she was doing, as she’s obviously a very well experienced producer and executive,” one top agent told TheWrap. “But managing brands like ‘Star Wars’ is an impossible task because the fanbases of all fanboy IP are toxic. Her biggest weakness is that she decided to take the job in the first place.”
Kennedy’s time at Lucasfilm represented another step up in a career almost exclusively defined by them, particularly after the sale to Disney.
“Kathleen Kennedy is one of the most legendary producers of my lifetime,” said a franchise film producer. “I wondered at the time why did she want to take over from George. She made a bunch of TV shows and movies with a mixed degree of success. I don’t know if anyone will do better, but I wish her the best.”
Filoni is a protégé of Lucas who developed the long-running (and highly regarded) “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” animated series, which ran from 2008–2013 and returned with new episodes in 2020. He sees himself as the keeper of the old Lucasfilm flame, since his tenure long predates Kennedy’s, as well as the keeper of the franchise’s ever-deepening mythology. He works closely with Lucasfilm’s Story Team to maintain continuity across television series, movies, games, publishing initiatives and theme park experiences.
Filoni made the jump to live-action with “The Mandalorian” and its spinoff “The Book of Boba Fett,” as well as “Ahsoka,” which was based on an animated character that he created. He co-wrote the upcoming feature “The Mandalorian and Grogu” and is working on the second season of “Ahsoka” while also fulfilling his duties as chief creative officer.
The British-born Brennan’s career started with Lucasfilm in 1999, when she served as Technical Area Leader for the Computer Graphics Technical Directors for Industrial Light & Magic, the groundbreaking visual effects house owned by Lucasfilm and started for the first “Star Wars.” Ten years later, she was president of ILM.
She saw the company expand – opening satellite operations in Singapore, Vancouver and London – and as the president and general manager of Lucasfilm’s businesses, continues to keep an eye on ILM. She also oversees Skywalker Sound and Lucasfilm Franchise groups including Marketing and Integrated Planning, Games, Publishing and Consumer Products, Publicity, Asset Management and Content Strategy. She also looks after Lucasfilm Studio operations, including Human Resources, Finance and Legal.
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