Star Wars director Rian Johnson voices his support for the cancelled Kylo Ren movie as fan demand for the project continues. Kylo actor Adam Driver revealed last month that he and director Steven Soderbergh put together a pitch for a film called The Hunt for Ben Solo, an idea that Disney ultimately shot down.
That hasn’t stopped fans from pushing for The Hunt for Ben Solo to become a reality, though, and Johnson, who directed the divisive Star Wars: Episode VII – The Last Jedi (2017), now expresses interest in the idea in an interview with Collider.
The filmmaker makes clear he has no inside knowledge of the movie, but he seemingly supports the campaign to get it made, saying of the project: “Take my money!“ Check out Johnson’s full comment below:
“Take my money! I only know what I read about it online. I didn’t know anything about it, but who knows how things are developed these days? But man, I will watch Driver in anything, but I would love to see him play that character again.”
Driver’s comments about The Hunt for Ben Solo arrived as part of an October interview with The Associated Press. “I always was interested in doing another Star Wars,” Driver told the publication. “I had been talking about doing another one since 2021. Kathleen [Kennedy, president of Lucasfilm] had reached out. I always said: With a great director and a great story, I’d be there in a second. I loved that character and loved playing him.”
Driver joined forces with Soderbergh and Rebecca Blunt to outline the story for the film, with Scott Z. Burns then being enlisted to write what Driver described as “one of the coolest (expletive) scripts I had ever been a part of.”
Lucasfilm, as Driver explains, was actually onboard with the idea of The Hunt for Ben Solo. But when Driver, Soderbergh, and Blunt took their pitch to Disney CEO Bob Iger, the project hit a brick wall:
We presented the script to Lucasfilm. They loved the idea. 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.
The Hunt for Ben Solo would have taken place after the events of Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019), which memorably features Kylo, aka Ben, sacrificing himself to save Rey (Daisy Ridley). Though Iger may not have been on board with Kylo returning from the dead, it’s not without precedent in the franchise.
Numerous Star Wars characters have returned from the dead in the past. This includes Darth Maul and, infamously, Emperor Palpatine. The response to Palpatine’s resurrection in The Rise of Skywalker was generally quite negative, and it’s possible Iger and Bergman were influenced by this.
As The Mandalorian & Grogu‘s 2026 release approaches, there has been an outpouring of support for The Hunt for Ben Solo. A fan campaign to save the film has been launched, and this has included a billboard rental in Times Square and a plane sporting a “Save The Hunt For Ben Solo” banner flying over Disney Studios in Burbank, California.
It’s not clear if this campaign will actually move the needle on the cancelled Star Wars project, but Johnson’s support certainly doesn’t hurt. If The Hunt for Ben Solo ever does happen, the director would seemingly be first in line to see it on the big screen.
- Cast
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Mark Hamill, James Earl Jones, David Prowse, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Ian McDiarmid, Ewan McGregor, Rosario Dawson, Lars Mikkelsen, Rupert Friend, Moses Ingram, Frank Oz, Pedro Pascal
- TV Show(s)
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The Mandalorian, Andor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, The Acolyte, Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, Lando, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels, Star Wars: The Bad Batch, Star Wars: Resistance, Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures, Star Wars: Visions
- Movie(s)
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Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back, Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi, Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens, Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi, Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise of Skywalker, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi, Star Wars: New Jedi Order
- Character(s)
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Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Rey Skywalker, Emperor Palpatine / Darth Sidious, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka Tano, Grand Admiral Thrawn, Grand Inquisitor, Reva (The Third Sister), The Fifth Brother, The Seventh Sister, The Eighth Brother, Yoda, Din Djarin, Grogu, Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, Leia Organa, Ben Solo/Kylo Ren
