Shawn Levy's Starfighter Cast Finally Has Us Excited About Star Wars Again

Do you remember the days when "Star Wars" movies used to be good? Not "Star Wars" in general — the movies. "Andor" season 2 has barely stopped tugging our heartstrings with its grounded rebel stories, the well-received "Star Wars Jedi: Survivor" video game was released in 2023, and Marvel is dropping sweet (and often Darth Vader-themed) comics all the time. "Star Wars" as a franchise is doing just fine. The movies, on the other hand, could use a win. 

It's been close to a decade since the franchise rolled out a truly worthwhile big-screen effort — either "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" (2016) or "The Last Jedi" (2017), depending on your opinion — and more than five years since it released any movies at all. (2019's "The Rise of Skywalker" is the most recent.) That's a long dry spell for a franchise that announced its existence with arguably the greatest sci-fi movie trilogy of all time — but fortunately, it might finally be nearing its end, thanks to Shawn Levy's ("Stranger Things," "Deadpool & Wolverine") upcoming "Star Wars: Starfighter." (Technically, Jon Favreau's "The Mandalorian and Grogu" is coming to theaters first, but that seems to be more of the same from the Mando corner of the universe, which, frankly, is not all that exciting.)

Lucasfilm just introduced the movie's full central cast, which is a surefire sign that this movie intends to be A Serious Thing: Apart from the already announced "Drive" and "Barbie" star Ryan Gosling (who's a draw in and of himself), "Starfighter" has acquired the talents of young Flynn Gray ("Baltimore"), Matt Smith ("Doctor Who"; "Caught Stealing"), Mia Goth (Ti West's "X" film series), Aaron Pierre ("Rebel Ridge"), Simon Bird ("The Inbetweeners"), Jamael Westman ("Good Grief"), Daniel Ings ("The Crown"), and six-time Oscar nominee Amy Adams ("Arrival"). 

That's a lot of talented people. Combined with Levy's proven filmmaking skills and a script from Jonathan Tropper of "Warrior" and "Banshee" fame, "Star Wars: Starfighter" is already looking like a "Star Wars" movie unlike anything we've seen before, and potentially a good one at that. Yes, everyone, it's finally OK to get excited about a new "Star Wars" film.

Shawn Levy and Ryan Gosling's "Star Wars" movie has been a known commodity for a while now. Its name and release date were announced in April, but it's been a long time coming. News of Levy possibly helming a "Star Wars" project after "Deadpool 3" surfaced back in 2022, and it wasn't until 2025 when we found out that Ryan Gosling would be giving "Star Wars" a blast of Kenergy. 

Now that things have had the chance to simmer for a while, the new cast announcement seals the deal, and it truly appears that the movie leg of the franchise is once again cooking with gasoline. Levy, who will also produce the film, seems just as giddy about the project as the most excited fan. As he told StarWars.com: 

"I feel a profound sense of excitement and honor as we begin production on 'Star Wars: Starfighter.' From the day [co-producer Kathleen] Kennedy called me up, inviting me to develop an original adventure in this incredible 'Star Wars' galaxy, this experience has been a dream come true, creatively and personally. 'Star Wars' shaped my sense of what story can do, how characters and cinematic moments can live with us forever. To join this storytelling galaxy with such brilliant collaborators onscreen and off, is the thrill of a lifetime."

There you have it. Come what may, Levy seems absolutely determined to tell the best "Star Wars" story that he possibly can. And with the sheer amount of talent involved here, he seems to have all the tools he needs to make it happen. 

"Star Wars: Starfighter" will fly to a theater near you on May 28, 2027.