Director Taika Waititi, well-known for his unique and quirky approach to filmmaking, gained recognition in the entertainment industry thanks to his movies like What We Do in the Shadows (2014), Jojo Rabbit (2019), and Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016).
Waititi became a household name after he directed the last two Thor movies, Thor: Ragnarok (2017) and Thor: Love and Thunder (2022). The director is all set to work on the next Thor movie as well, however, there was another highly-anticipated project that Waititi was working on, his own Star Wars movie. Due to the ongoing Hollywood Writers and Actors’ Strike the production of the film has been halted and shows no signs of releasing anytime soon. After keeping the fans in the dark for so long, Waititi finally gave a disappointing update.
What happened to Taika Waititi’s Star Wars movie?
Hollywood director Taika Waititi recently gave his fans an update about his Star Wars movie. Waititi recently praised fellow director Shawn Levy at the Toronto International Film Festival Tribute Awards and during the speech, he subtly revealed that he is struggling to finish the script of his Star Wars movie (via Variety),
“Once he’s had his way with [the Deadpool] franchise, like a cruel and indiscriminate virus, he’ll move on to another, and another, and another… And then eventually, probably Star Wars… and unlike me, maybe this guy manages to finish the script for that.”
Waititi is not a stranger to the franchise as he has made significant contributions, as a director as well as an actor in The Mandalorian. He voices IG-11 and also directed The Mandalorian season 1 finale.
Also read: Next Goal Wins TIFF Review: Taika Waititi’s Weakest Movie Yet Is a Conventional Crowd-Pleaser
The project was announced three years ago
Lucasfilm announced in May 2020 that Waititi was assigned to co-write and direct a new Star Wars movie. Since then, the project has witnessed major delays. Waititi once revealed his vision for the movie (via GamesRadar)
“Look, I think for the Star Wars universe to expand, it has to expand. I don’t think that I’m any use in the Star Wars universe making a film where everyone’s like, ‘Oh great, well that’s the blueprints to the Millennium Falcon, ah that’s Chewbacca’s grandmother.’ That all stands alone, that’s great, though I would like to take something new and create some new characters and just expand the world, otherwise it feels like it’s a very small story.”
Another major reason why Waititi’s project has been paused is the ongoing Writers and Actors’ strike. Not just Waititi’s movie, but many major Hollywood projects have been delayed due to the strike.
Will Taika Waititi butcher the movie?
Waititi’s work has been mostly remarkable so far, but given what he did to the Thor franchise, there are chances he might ruin another fan-favorite franchise. 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok was praised and was even credited for revitalizing the character and his arc, however, 2022’s Thor: Love and Thunder was underwhelming.
Some fans complained that it felt like a rehashed version of Thor: Ragnarok and Waititi failed to bring out the true potential of Thor as well as Gorr the God Butcher. With all eyes on his next Thor movie, fans are hoping his doesn’t disappoint again.
Source: Variety
