Kennedy Says Lucasfilm Exit Brought ‘A Bit of Relief’

Kathleen Kennedy said leaving Lucasfilm brought “a bit of relief” after 14 years leading the studio, describing the job of overseeing the Star Wars franchise as an “incredible challenge” during an interview at Bloomberg’s Screentime event in Los Angeles on September 30, 2026. Kennedy said the most difficult part of the role was balancing the expectations of longtime fans with the need to create new stories. She said fans should be heard without their views becoming a referendum on creative decisions, while filmmakers should have room to pursue distinct visions. Her remarks addressed a recurring challenge for a franchise with a multigenerational audience, she said. Asked about her accomplishments, Kennedy named Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Andor and The Mandalorian. She said she remained proud of the work produced during her tenure and described learning from postmortems about what worked and what did not. She did not identify specific projects she regretted or would change. Kennedy also recalled asking Star Wars creator George Lucas for guidance after he selected her as his successor. She said Lucas gave her a couple of paragraphs of story ideas but no story treatments.