Despite Kathleen Kennedy revealing recently that Star Wars is coming back to the big screen in a big way in the future, Lucasfilm is not holding back on their upcoming Disney+ series either, with Jude Law-starring Star Wars: Skeleton Crew reportedly costing around $136 million for its first season. To put this in context, the first season of The Mandalorian came in around $100 million. While there is not a great deal known about the new series, with that kind of budget, it seems like we are getting something pretty huge in scope.
The newest addition to the Star Wars line-up was originally announced back in May at Star Wars Celebration, when it was revealed that Jude Law would be leading the series. The story will take place in the wake of Return of the Jedi and will feature a “coming of age” story about children attempting to find their way home following the fall of the Empire. While there have been no other plot details revealed, the intrigue around the show is enough to get many Star Wars fans on board.
Details about the expected budget of the series came from a report in The Hollywood Reporter, and while the $136 million is massive compared to other new Star Wars projects, when put alongside the $150-$225 million budgets assigned to Marvel Studios offerings such as WandaVision, Loki and Hawkeye, it doesn’t actually seem that high at all. In the end, the budget is pretty irrelevant as long as the series pays its way by bringing new subscribers to Disney+, and to the Star Wars saga. However, as also reported in the article, some of the cost will be offset by $20.9 million in tax credits that have been awarded to Lucasfilm by the California Film Commission.
More Skeleton Crew Details Could Come Soon
It was revealed earlier this month that filming on Star Wars: Skeleton Crew has already started in California. Currently, Jude Law is the only cast member known to be attached to the project, although there have been casting calls for four young actors to play the main roles in the series. While there will no doubt be plenty more casting announcements to be made, more about the series will likely be revealed at this year’s D23 Expo in September, when Disney is expected to reveal a lot about the future of the Star Wars and Marvel Universes.
Star Wars fans are still currently on a high from the triumphant finale of Obi-Wan Kenobi, and with the promise of much more to come from the galaxy far, far away, there is going to be no shortage of new content coming to the franchise in the next few years. However, there is still a lot of uncertainty about which projects will be getting priority at Lucasfilm, and while movies like Rogue Squadron definitely seem to be on the back burner, others such as Taika Waititi’s movie could be fast-tracked through even though the Thor: Love and Thunder director has said that he is yet to start working on the script.