The future of the Star Wars franchise is, in many ways, a big mystery. But Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy has provided a little window into the studio's plans for the iconic sci-fi series moving forward. What we know for sure is that the movies will be moving beyond The Skywalker Saga, which concluded with last year's The Rise of Skywalker. Now, as Kennedy tells it, they will be looking to the wider mythology for inspiration.

Kathleen Kennedy has been in charge of Lucasfilm since George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars, sold the company to Disney in 2012. In a recent interview, Kennedy explained where they are in the process of figuring out where to take a galaxy far, far away in future projects. Here's what she had to say about it.

"It's an ever-evolving process. You know, when I personally came into this, George had already been having conversations with his previous actors, Carrie (Fisher) and Harrison (Ford) and Mark (Hamill), there was a saga that the fans loved and he never finished. He always talked about doing nine movies and he was ready to complete that. And so our focus had been from the beginning on finishing that saga. And now we're stepping back. Stories have been told within this universe over the last 40-odd years, and there's now the realization that this is a mythology that actually spans about 25,000 years, when you really start to look at all the different stories that have been told, whether it's in books and games."

While nothing has been firmed up, there were consistent rumors that Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss was going to explore The Old Republic in a trilogy of movies before they exited the project. In any event, that lines up with Kathleen Kennedy's comments, in terms of exploring the larger mythology of the universe. Speaking further, Kennedy explained they are currently meeting with filmmakers for future projects.

"We just need the time to step back and really absorb what George has created, and then start to think about where things might go. That's what we've been doing, and we've been having a great deal of fun doing it, and meeting with lots of different filmmakers and talent. There's so many fans out there and so many filmmakers that have been influenced by Star Wars for so long that it's a fantastic opportunity to get a sense of who wants to be a part of this. So that's what we've been doing."

Taika Waititi, who directed The Mandalorian season 1 finale, as well as Thor: Ragnarok, has been tapped to helm a new Star Wars movie. So far, he is the only one confirmed for a new entry. Though The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson's trilogy is still technically on the books. Lastly, Kennedy was asked if she thinks TV will be a bigger part of the future, thanks to the success of The Mandalorian.

"I do. And I've already seen evidence of it. The ability to be very character-driven, with extended storytelling and connected storytelling, I think this space offers us a great opportunity to do that."

As far as the movies go, Disney recently shuffled around its release schedule, with the next Star Wars movie dated for December 22, 2023. Further entries will follow on December 19, 2025, and December 17, 2027. We'll be sure to keep you posted as any further details on these movies are made available. This news comes to us via The Wrap.