Kathleen Kennedy Addresses Retirement Rumors, Reveals Star Wars Succession Strategy

Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy has addressed recent reports suggesting she plans to retire in 2025. Earlier this week, Puck News claimed that the veteran film producer was set to retire at the end of her contract this year, noting that she had previously considered retiring in 2024 but postponed the decision. While Variety reported that a source close to Kennedy dismissed Puck's story as "pure speculation," The Hollywood Reporter confirmed the report.

Every Upcoming Star Wars Movie and TV Show

20 ImagesKennedy has now personally responded to these claims. According to Deadline, she is collaborating with Disney CEO Bob Iger on a succession plan after 13 years in her role. Star Wars Rebels creator and current Lucasfilm chief creative officer, Dave Filoni, is reportedly in a "strong position" to succeed her. However, Kennedy firmly stated, "The truth is, and I want to just say loud and clear, I am not retiring."

She emphasized her dedication to the film industry, saying, "I will never retire from movies. I will die making movies. That is the first thing that’s important to say. I am not retiring."

While Kennedy confirmed that Lucasfilm intends to make an announcement about her succession "months or a year down the road," she made it clear that she is "continuing to stay at Lucasfilm." Her ongoing projects include producing the upcoming Mandalorian movie and a Star Wars film directed by Shawn Levy, known for Deadpool & Wolverine.

Kennedy's comments suggest that while she is planning to step down from her current role as president of Lucasfilm, she is not leaving the company or retiring from the film industry. She remarked, "I’m not going to be here forever. George [Lucas] asked me 13 years ago to step in, and now I’m looking at who’s going to replace me. And as I said, we have a bench of people internally to handle the business, the creative side. The job has grown also since I stepped in. There was no streaming, there weren’t a lot of the things that we’re involved in right now going on. So it has grown."

Kennedy also refuted any suggestions that she was being "pushed aside" or "in need of being replaced," stating that such claims were "absolutely not the case" and "could not be further from the truth." During her tenure, she has overseen the production of the new Star Wars sequel trilogy (Episodes 7-9), and the launch of Star Wars' streaming era, which includes hits like The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Andor, Ahsoka, Skeleton Crew, and The Acolyte. While some projects like Star Wars: The Force Awakens were major successes, others, such as Solo: A Star Wars Story, have been less financially successful and more divisive.

When Deadline directly asked Kennedy if she would step down as Lucasfilm boss this year, she responded that she did not know "at this stage," but assured that any decision would be "100% my decision." She remained non-committal about whether Filoni would take over her role.