“Bring back George Lucas”: Star Wars fans celebrate embattled boss Kathleen Kennedy’s retirement announcement

25 February, 2025

Star Wars

Star Wars fans have reacted online to the news that Kathleen Kennedy will be stepping down from her role as President of Lucasfilm.

A report from Puck News has said the executive, who has overseen the studio since it was purchased by Disney in 2012, will retire at the end of the year. Her tenure has seen three main franchise instalments: The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise Of Skywalker; as well as spin-offs Rogue One and Solo.

She also expanded the universe into the TV realm, with spin-off series The Mandalorian, Andor, Skeleton Crew and others making their way to the Disney+ streaming service.

Kennedy leaves behind a complicated legacy which has seen some of the biggest box office successes in franchise history but has also divided fans with the direction of some of the latter films in the Star Wars Sequel trilogy.

On X (formerly Twitter), one fan posted: “Star Wars will finally be free from her reign as Emperor”, while another added: “Kathleen Kennedy destroyed the Star Wars franchise. It’s insane that she wasn’t fired sooner”.

 

One tweet proclaimed: “All Star Wars fans are rejoicing over the goods this morning in regard to Kathleen Kennedy”, while another warned: “Reminder: It wasn’t Kathleen Kennedy that ‘ruined’ star wars…. IT WAS THE MOUSE” referring to Disney.
As to the franchise’s future, one fan had a straight forward request: “Bring back George Lucas!!!”

While Kennedy had her critics in the role, at least one user wanted to remind people of the successes of the most recent run of films. “I read that Kathleen Kennedy is planning on stepping down as President of Lucasfilm. I wish her well. I thought Rogue One & Solo were 2 of the better films after the original trilogy. The Mandalorian was special & attracted more fans to Star Wars”.

 

On the big screen, the next Star Wars adventure will be The Mandalorian & Grogu, set to hit cinemas in 2026. A second season of Andor, out April 22, recently released its first trailer.

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