Last year, Lucasfilm asked Shawn Levy, the director popular for Deadpool 3 and The Adam Project, to direct his very own Star Wars movie. Although his film was not among the three Star Wars movies announced at Celebration, the Stranger Things director tried to avoid questions about Adam Driver, the star of the sequel trilogy.
During an interview with Variety, Shawn Levy discussed the prospect of Adam Driver appearing in his upcoming Star Wars film. When asked about his movie possibly being a prequel to The Force Awakens, allowing Driver to make a comeback in the franchise, Levy claimed that he is a "huge fan of Kylo Ren. But no comment."
Both Driver and Levy have worked together in the past on 2014’s popular movie This is Where I Leave You. The director also recently responded with the same “no comment” answer when he was asked about Taylor Swift playing the role of Dazzler in Deadpool 3.
Previously, in an interview with Variety, Levy also talked about his Star Wars film and how it’s going to be different. The filmmaker shared what Lucasfilm’s President Kathleen’s instruction was to him, which was that she wanted a “Shawn Levy movie:”
When Kathy Kennedy brought me on board to make a ' Star Wars ' movie, her central mandate to me was 'I want a Shawn Levy movie. I want a story and a tone that reflects you and your taste and what you bring to your movies — with a Star Wars story.' So I have felt extremely empowered.
The director continued to explain that the development for his movie was "abruptly paused [due to the WGA strike]," however he feels "empowered to trust my instincts." Not only this, but Adam Driver has also talked about whether he’ll be making his return to the world of Star Wars in an interview with Unilad.
In 2021, before the news of Levy’s Star Wars film was shared with the public, Driver said that he was "not against" a Star Wars return only if he’s "working with great filmmakers:"
No, I’m totally not against it. For me, it’s a filmmaker’s medium, so my only thing is working with great filmmakers. Whatever the size… it’s never been interesting to me, to an extent. There’s interesting things about working on both. I always just follow people I’d be interested in working with, and whether I’d be right for the part – things like that. No, definitely not averse.
Will Adam Driver return To Star Wars?
While Shawn Levy tried to avoid the topic of Adam Driver, he did not completely reject the idea and shared that he appreciated his character. It’s unsure if that’s proof of Kylo Ren’s appearance in the movie, but it’s worth noting that the director’s Star Wars film won’t be released anytime soon, so we won’t be getting any answers.
There’s also a slight chance that the movie might not develop at all because of Lucasfilm’s history with directors. Despite that, plenty of evidence still points towards the franchise being interested in some more Kylo Ren/Ben Solo storytelling. For example, back in 2020, sources suggested that Lucasfilm might develop a project featuring Ben Solo, and it’s highly likely that it would be a Force Awakens sequel.
Considering how good Adam Driver’s performance was in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, it’s highly possible that Lucasfilm will be on board with the idea if Levy wants to work with Driver once again. This project might also complement Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau’s MandoVerse, as it’s set before the events of The Force Awakens.
We might hear more about Shawn Levy’s plans for his Star Wars movie as both Deadpool 3 and Stranger Things season 5 approach their releases.
