Kathleen Kennedy Reportedly Expected to Retire as President of Lucasfilm Later This Year

Longtime Lucasfilm President and film producer, Kathleen Kennedy, is reportedly planning her exit as as head of the studio. Puck reports that Kennedy informed her associates that she plans on retiring at the end of 2025. Reps for Kennedy and Lucasfilm have not yet commented on the news.

Variety reports that Kennedy will retire at the end of her contract. However, Variety notes that a separate source that’s close to Kennedy dismissed Puck’s initial report as “pure speculation” and said nothing has been decided.

Kennedy was initially named co-chair of Lucasfilm in 2012 along with original Star Wars creator George Lucas. She later took over after Lucas sold the company to Disney in a $4 billion deal, prompting Lucas’ retirement.

Kennedy’s tenure as head of Lucasfilm has seen many ups and downs, including the successful relaunch of the Star Wars franchise in theaters with Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens in 2015, which grossed more than $2 billion worldwide. Just a year later, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story grossed over $533 million domestically and over $1 billion worldwide. Initially, Disney and Lucasfilm planned to release a new Star Wars film every year, but those plans were put on hold following the release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker 2019. The financial disappointment of SOLO: A Star Wars Story in 2018 halted many of the studio’s theatrical plans for the franchise. While The Rise of Skywalker still managed to gross over $500 million domestically and over $1 billion worldwide, the film received a negative response from critics and fans overall, earning only half of what The Rise of Skywalker grossed several years earlier.

Kennedy’s reign as head of the studio also saw many controversial decisions. Chris Lord and Phil Miller were fired as the directors of SOLO midway through production. The film later brought on Ron Howard as its new director, but it did not do well in theaters. The production of Rogue One was also rocky, with Lucasfilm taking the production away from director Gareth Edwards and bringing on Tony Gilroy to oversee reshoots.

Over the last several years, Lucasfilm announced a number of Star Wars projects that were either canceled or never materialized, including a new trilogy from Game of Thrones showrunners D.B. Benioff and David Weiss, a new trilogy from The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson, a Rogue Squadron film from Patty Jenkins, among others. About two years ago, Lucasfilm announced multiple new theatrical Star Wars sequels meant to feature the return of Daisy Ridley’s Rey Skywalker and the new Jedi Order. However, the project has struggled during its development phase and initial announcement.

Last year, Lucasfilm also revived the iconic Indiana Jones film franchise, with Harrison Ford returning to his famous role. However the film, reportedly budgeted about $295 million, was a theatrical disappointment, grossing only $384 million worldwide and garnering mixed reviews.

Kathleen Kennedy did manage to oversee the live-action episodic series debut of the Star Wars franchise with The Mandalorian, which debuted on the then-new Disney+ streaming service in 2019. The show was a great success, introducing the popular character Grogu, aka “Baby Yoda.” After three seasons, The Mandalorian will transition to the big screen next year with The Mandalorian & Grogu on May 22, 2026. This will mark the first theatrically released Star Wars film in over six years.

Recent years have seen Lucasfilm largely pivot to the streaming television format for the Star Wars franchise with mixed results. The critically acclaimed Andor, a television prequel spinoff featuring characters from Rogue One will also debut its second season on April 22. Other live-action Star Wars series produced in recent years include Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, and The Acolyte.

Besides her work at Lucasfilm, the 71-year-old Kennedy has had a storied career as a major Hollywood producer, working alongside Steven Spielberg and her husband Frank Marshall. She’s credited as a producer on such classics as the E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, Back to the Future trilogy, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Indiana Jones, and more.

News of Kennedy’s eventual exit comes shortly before the Star Wars Celebration event set for April in Tokyo, Japan. More announcements regarding the future of the Star Wars franchise are expected. There is no word yet on who might serve as Kennedy’s replacement.