Can Adam Driver’s Axed ‘Star Wars’ Movie ‘The Hunt For Ben Solo’ Be Revived Under New Disney CEO? Soderbergh Says ‘Nope’: ‘If It Was Gonna Happen, It Would’ve’

Stephen Soderbergh has no intention of reviving “The Hunt for Ben Solo” under Disney’s new leadership. During an interview with “The Playlist” on the press tour for his latest directorial effort, “The Christophers,” the filmmaker said “nope” when asked if he was trying to revive the movie and added: “Look, if it was gonna happen, it would have happened. It’s that simple.”

Adam Driver revealed the existence of “The Hunt for Ben Solo” in an October 2025 interview with the Associated Press, explaining he had been developing a movie to revive Ben Solo/Kylo Ren movie for two years with Soderbergh. Then Disney executives pulled the plug on them.

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“It was strictly Adam saying, ‘I think there’s still somewhere to go with this character.’ That’s how it started,” Soderbergh told The Playlist. “Otherwise, I never in a million years would have found myself in that universe again… I don’t regret one minute of the time we spent working on that. I felt the work was good. It’s just good for you to be in that room and working on it. It’s like CrossFit — it’s good for you. It’ll have a residual effect that will be unexpected at some point.”

Driver loved “The Hunt for Ben Solo” script, telling the AP last year that it was the “standard” of what a “Star Wars” movie “should be” and comparing it to the “handmade and character-driven” feel of “The Empire Strikes Back.” He revealed that Lucasfilm execs Kennedy, Dave Filoni and Cary Beck backed the project until Disney shut it down.

“We presented the script to Lucasfilm. They loved the idea,” Driver recalled. “They totally understood our angle and why we were doing it. We took it to Bob Iger and Alan Bergman, and they said no. They didn’t see how Ben Solo was alive. And that was that.”

Since the project was axed, Soderbergh has moved onward and is not actively trying to get it made even with the new leadership at Disney and Lucasfilm. Kennedy, who supported “The Hunt for Ben Solo,” stepped down as Lucasfilm president in January after a 14-year run guiding the studio. Dave Filoni is now in charge as co-president and chief creative officer. Bob Iger, who reportedly was involved in the movie’s axing, is also no longer at Disney, with Josh D’Amaro now serving as CEO.

“As soon as it became apparent, ‘OK, not gonna happen,’ I sat down and started writing [something else],” Soderbergh told The Playlist. “It’s like, ‘OK, new scenario, let’s get cracking.’ At a certain point, it’s like complaining about the weather. You just gotta keep moving… Look, if it was gonna happen, it would have happened. It’s that simple.”

In an interview with BK Mag in February, the Oscar-winning Soderbergh said “we were all frustrated” when Disney executives pulled the plug on “The Hunt for Ben Solo.” He also revealed the studio axed the movie before even hearing how much it would cost.

“I’d kind of made the movie in my head, and just felt bad that nobody else was going to get to see it,” Soderbergh said at the time. “I thought the conversation was strictly going to be a practical one — where they go, what is this going to cost? And I had a really good answer for that. But it never even got to that point. It’s insane. We’re all very disappointed.”

Driver and Soderbergh’s interviews discussing “The Hunt for Ben Solo” have mobilized “Star Wars” fans on social media into calling for Disney to reverse its decision and put “The Hunt for Ben Solo” back in development. A group of “Star Wars” fans even paid for a plane to fly a banner reading “Save ‘The Hunt for Ben Solo’” over Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, Calif.