Jon Watts to Helm New Star Wars Film: What This Means

When talk of a new Star Wars trilogy resurfaced, the whisper list grew long. Now one name has moved from rumor to the top of the page: Jon Watts, the director who rebooted Spider-Man for a new generation, is reportedly set to direct the first film in Lucasfilm's next trilogy — a project described as a continuation of the Skywalker saga.

It’s a surprising pivot. Watts cut his teeth on intimate character beats and high-stakes spectacle in the Tom Holland Spider-Man films: Homecoming, Far From Home and No Way Home. Those films proved he can keep a crowd cheering while shepherding sprawling, expensive productions. But Star Wars asks something different. It asks myth.

Script duties, according to sources, fall to Simon Kinberg, who has been quietly shaping this trilogy since late 2024. The shorthand being whispered around Hollywood calls it the next chapter of the Skywalker narrative — “Episode X” in fan parlance — a slate of stories that would again orbit Luke’s legacy and the family threads that have driven the saga across decades.

And yes. Rey may return. Several outlets have reported that Rey Skywalker, the character Daisy Ridley embodied in the 2015–2019 trilogy, is expected to appear in some form. Lucasfilm has not made an official announcement and Disney has yet to greenlight the trilogy publicly; development, insiders say, is still ongoing.

Timing matters. Lucasfilm is currently finishing post-production on Star Wars: Starfighter, a separate tentpole directed by Shawn Levy and starring Ryan Gosling. That film is slated for a late-May 2027 release — a date chosen to coincide with the franchise’s fiftieth anniversary. If Watts’ trilogy moves forward, it would become one of the studio’s most prominent undertakings after Starfighter.

Watts isn’t unfamiliar with this galaxy. He co-created Star Wars: Skeleton Crew and directed two episodes of that 2024 series, so he knows the tonal range of the universe — its capacity for wonder and its appetite for character-driven stakes. Still, a trilogy is a different animal. Can the filmmaker who relit Spider-Man’s spark steer a saga that’s as much about mythmaking as it is about action?

There’s precedent for bringing filmmakers who excel at character work into franchise worlds and having them thrive. Watts’ resume includes more than blockbuster experience; after Spider-Man he tackled adult-skewing projects such as Wolfs, an Apple-backed film that made headlines for its casting and distribution drama. He’s proven adaptable. Studios often prize that quality when they hand over a lightsaber.

For now, watch for official word from Lucasfilm and Disney. Development leaks and insider briefings will continue to swirl. But if the reports hold, Jon Watts stepping up for a Skywalker-facing trilogy would signal Lucasfilm’s interest in directors who can traverse both intimacy and spectacle — a combination the franchise has been hunting for, in one form or another, for years.

Will Watts deliver a fresh tone while honoring decades of lore? The galaxy is listening.