While we still don’t know what Jon Watts’ Star Wars series is all about, a new report from Vanity Fair confirms the live-action show is resemblant to a 1980s coming-of-age story set in space. The latest report also confirms the untitled show will occur after Return of the Jedi in the Star Wars timeline, just as The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett.
Last February, it was revealed that Watts was in discussion to helm a new Star Wars show for Disney+. However, there was no information about what this show could be at the time. The latest report reveals that Watts was indeed snatched to helm the series, whose production title is “Grammar Rodeo.” The name references an episode of The Simpsons where Bart and his friends steal a car and run away for a whole week. Considering how the series is reportedly looking for four children, around 11 to 12 years old, to join the cast, the upcoming show could follow a group of lovable renegades involved with mischief across the Galaxy.
Another option is for the show to follow a new class of Padawans trained by Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill). In The Book of Boba Fett, we learn that Luke is building the Jedi Academy that would be destroyed by Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) many years later. At the time, the Jedi Master doesn’t have any official students. So, after returning Grogu to the Mandalorian Din (Pedro Pascal), it’s fair to assume Luke will search for other force-sensitive kids he can train in the Jedi way. Considering how the Galaxy is in rumbles after the dark reign of the Empire, it wouldn’t be surprising if the new Padawans are first found as a group of wrongdoers who find out their path through the Force.
Whatever the actual plot of “Grammar Rodeo” turns out to be, the idea of coming-of-age stories inspired by 1980s classics such as E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is a welcome addition to the Star Wars universe. The franchise was always more successful looking to the past than committing to hard science fiction, with The Mandalorian making a fine example of just how much Star Wars can copy from Westerns and get away with.
Watts is coming out hot from Spider-Man: No Way Home, the last chapter of the Web Crawler franchise he helmed for Sony and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. No Way Home crossed the $1.8 billion mark at the international box office, which means everyone will want some of Watt’s magic. Watts was previously set to direct the MCU debut of the Fantastic Four but has recently exited the project to take a break from superheroes. With the upcoming Star Wars series, Disney gives the filmmaker the time off he needs from the MCU, while also ensuring he keeps working in-house.
The next Star Wars show to hit Disney+ is Obi-Wan Kenobi, starring Ewan McGregor as the Jedi Master and Hayden Christensen as Sith Lord Darth Vader. Obi-Wan Kenobi premieres with two episodes on May 27, exclusively on Disney+.