During an interview with “The Playlist” on the press tour for his latest directorial effort, “The Christophers,” Steven Soderbergh has said that he has no intention of reviving “The Hunt for Ben Solo” under Disney’s new leadership, adding “Look, if it was gonna happen, it would have happened. It’s that simple.”
“It was strictly Adam saying, ‘I think there’s still somewhere to go with this character.’ That’s how it started,” Soderbergh told The Playlist. “Otherwise, I never in a million years would have found myself in that universe again… I don’t regret one minute of the time we spent working on that. I felt the work was good. It’s just good for you to be in that room and working on it. It’s like CrossFit — it’s good for you. It’ll have a residual effect that will be unexpected at some point.”
river loved “The Hunt for Ben Solo” script, telling the AP last year that it was the “standard” of what a “Star Wars” movie “should be” and comparing it to the “handmade and character-driven” feel of “The Empire Strikes Back.” He revealed that Lucasfilm execs Kennedy, Dave Filoni and Cary Beck backed the project until Disney shut it down.
“We presented the script to Lucasfilm. They loved the idea,” Driver recalled. “They totally understood our angle and why we were doing it. We took it to Bob Iger and Alan Bergman, and they said no. They didn’t see how Ben Solo was alive. And that was that.”
Since the project was axed, Soderbergh has moved onward and is not actively trying to get it made even with the new leadership at Disney and Lucasfilm. Kennedy, who supported “The Hunt for Ben Solo,” stepped down as Lucasfilm president in January after a 14-year run guiding the studio. Dave Filoni is now in charge as co-president and chief creative officer. Bob Iger, who reportedly was involved in the movie’s axing, is also no longer at Disney, with Josh D’Amaro now serving as CEO.
“As soon as it became apparent, ‘OK, not gonna happen,’ I sat down and started writing [something else],” Soderbergh told The Playlist. “It’s like, ‘OK, new scenario, let’s get cracking.’ At a certain point, it’s like complaining about the weather. You just gotta keep moving… Look, if it was gonna happen, it would have happened. It’s that simple.”
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