Kathleen Kennedy: Is she Really Stepping down from Star Wars or is it just a Rumor?

On Feb. 24, 2025, Puck’s Matthew Belloni reported that, “Kathleen Kennedy has informed Disney, as well as friends and associates, that she will exit as Lucasfilm president by the end of the year.” Soon, other outlets began reporting the same as speculation spiraled into who will take over the high-profile job from Kennedy. However, the reports might not be true yet. In this article, we will discuss what’s going on regarding this story. 

Is Kathleen Kennedy Leaving Lucasfilms and Star Wars?

At the time of writing, it hasn’t been confirmed if Kathleen Kennedy, who has overseen the Star Wars franchise into the Disney era, will step down from her position as president of Lucasfilm after her current contract expires. CNN reports that these claims haven't been confirmed yet and “any announcement of Kennedy’s retirement, if indeed there’s anything to announce, will be made “public” when “actual decisions are made.”"

Why do many Star Wars fans want Kathleen Kennedy to step down?

Kathleen Kennedy joined Lucasfilm 2012 as co-chair. But soon after she was named as the president after Lucas parted ways and Disney acquired the company for $4 billion. Since then, she has added a new Star Wars trilogy to the franchise. The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and Rise of Skywalker were all box-office successes. 

However, the new trilogy was plagued with diminishing returns and fan complaints of mediocrity and not following the established lore of the franchise. The disastrous Solo: A Star Wars Story made things worse, however, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story fared really well. 

Soon, Disney geared Star Wars for the small screen, and with it came multiple projects like The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, and Obi-Wan Kenobi. All of them were well-received by fans and critics alike and enjoyed good viewership numbers as well. Andor, whose season 2 is going to premiere soon, is also critically beloved. However, The Acolyte was a failure, and the Skeleton Crew wasn’t received well.

To make matters worse, there are multiple projects like Rian Johnson’s trilogy and one from Game of Thrones showrunners D.B. Benioff and David Weiss that never materialized. Also, Daisy Ridley's return to the franchise hasn't seen much development even though it was announced about two years ago.

It remains to be seen how this story about Kathleen Kennedy's departure shapes up. Stay tuned, as we will keep updating this story with the latest details. Meanwhile, all the Star Wars films and shows are available for streaming on Disney+.