The Next Wave of Star Wars: Every Movie and Series After The Mandalorian & Grogu

Star Wars is about to make its way back to cinemas, if you can believe it. After a fair old stretch of streaming spin-offs and animated detours, the big-screen galaxy far, far away is waking up. So, what’s actually coming up, and which of those wild-plotted projects are still alive? Here’s what’s locked in, what’s on the maybe pile, and all the latest on Disney and Lucasfilm’s plans (when they’re not quietly binning things behind the scenes).

The Mandalorian and Grogu: Star Wars' Cinematic Comeback

Let’s start with the headline: The Mandalorian and Grogu will hit cinemas on 22 May 2026. Yes, that’s the next actual Star Wars film in a proper theatre since The Rise of Skywalker wrapped things up—badly, in my book—in December 2019. Disney’s obviously realised chasing streaming numbers isn’t right for everything, so the live-action shows have been nudged aside, making room for proper cinematic releases again. Animation will carry on filling Disney+ for now, but the message is clear: the Mando and his little green mate will launch a new film era.

And let’s be honest, if you blinked and missed the endless parade of announcements that went nowhere, I don’t blame you. Here’s how the future of Star Wars actually looks, cutting through the chaos.

What’s Next in the Star Wars Universe?

• Star Wars: Visions Presents (2026)
  Right after the Mando movie, we’re getting an animated offshoot called Visions Presents. This expands on the most popular story from the Visions anthology—specifically, 'The Ninth Jedi', which will finally get blown out into a proper series. Expect it to land on Disney+ sometime in 2026. It’s all about giving fan-favourite shorts space to breathe.
• Ahsoka Season 2 (early 2027)
  Thought you’d see more Rosario Dawson soon? Nope. The second series of Ahsoka has been bumped back to early 2027—almost four years after season one. This time, Ahsoka and Sabine Wren (that’s Natasha Liu Bordizzo, if you’ve not kept up) are fighting to stop Grand Admiral Thrawn. Worth flagging: this is currently the last confirmed live-action Star Wars show in development.
• Star Wars' 50th Anniversary Re-release (19 February 2027)
  This is one for the nostalgics. Disney’s sending Star Wars: A New Hope—yep, the 1977 original—back to cinemas for its 50th anniversary. Crucially, it’s 'newly restored' and apparently the original theatrical version, with none of the notorious Special Edition tweaks: no Greedo shooting first, no dodgy new Jabba scene, no 'Maclunkey'. If you want pure old-school Star Wars, here’s your shot.
• Starfighter (27 May 2027)
  Next up is something called Starfighter. Shawn Levy is directing, with Ryan Gosling heading the cast. There’s also Flynn Gray, Mia Goth, Matt Smith, Aaron Pierre, and Amy Adams—quite a lineup. Disney is keeping plot details under wraps, but it’s set five years after The Rise of Skywalker, so expect this to break new ground in the Star Wars timeline, for whatever that’s worth.
• Maul – Shadow Lord Season 2 (2027)
  People rave about Andor, but the first season of Maul – Shadow Lord actually did even better with critics. This animated series finds the ex-Sith trying to rebuild his criminal empire and recruiting a new apprentice—the Twi’lek Order 66 survivor, Devon (voiced by Gideon Adlon). Season two was greenlit and probably made alongside series one, so could arrive as early as 2027.
• Rey Film (Release date TBD)
  Beyond 2027, nothing has a nailed-on release date yet. But the big-ticket project is a film about Rey (Daisy Ridley), set 15 years after The Rise of Skywalker, following her attempt to start a new Jedi Order. This film has had more writers than a second-hand lightsaber: Damon Lindelof and Justin Britt-Gibson wrote the first script, Lindelof was sacked (he wanted an ambitious 'Protestant reformation' take), Steven Knight joined, then quit, then George Nolfi picked up the script in 2025.
• Mandalorian Crossover Film (TBD)
  Back in 2020, Disney promised a big crossover film tying up The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, and the now-dead Rangers of the New Republic (much like a Star Wars-flavoured Avengers). Announced again at Star Wars Celebration 2023 with Dave Filoni to direct, this one's now quietly on ice, especially since Filoni ended up running Lucasfilm. Frankly, whether it happens probably depends on how well The Mandalorian and Grogu does at the box office.
• Jedi Prime (TBD)
  This one’s pure prequel—set 25,000 years before The Phantom Menace. After doing Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, James Mangold was attached to direct what he calls a 'biblical epic', focusing on the first ever Jedi. Despite some confusion over the title (was 'Dawn of the Jedi', now apparently Jedi Prime), Mangold and co-writer Simon Willimon have delivered a script. But the project’s paused, thanks to Mangold’s jam-packed diary—he’s now busy with Swamp Thing for DC and a bundle of Paramount stuff on top.
• Lando (TBD)
  Despite Solo: A Star Wars Story flopping at the box office, Donald Glover’s Lando was a hit with fans. A Lando series was originally announced with Justin Simien running things, but by 2023, Donald and his brother Stephen Glover had taken over—and the project pivoted from series to feature film. Glover got a script in by 2026, before Kathleen Kennedy exited Lucasfilm, but the thing’s still floating in the scheduling void.
• Rogue Squadron (TBD)
  Remember Rogue Squadron? That was supposed to be the first new film post-Skywalker saga, with Patty Jenkins set to direct a story about X-Wing pilots. It had a release date (23 December 2023), then hit endless production snags in 2022 and got yanked from the schedule. People thought it was dead after Jenkins' Wonder Woman 3 got canned. But Jenkins came back to work on a new script in 2024, and signed on with Lucasfilm again. No updates since, and Kennedy didn’t even mention the film when she left.

What’s the Mood at Lucasfilm?

Here’s a telling comment, just to sum up how tricky things have been at the top:

'Throughout the past few years, a load of Star Wars projects have been teased or announced, only to disappear or stall before getting close to production. Hardly shocking then that fans are struggling to keep up with what’s actually coming.'

So, there it is—the future looks busy but, as ever, not entirely settled. If you’re hedging bets, keep your eye on The Mandalorian and Grogu. If that smashes it at the box office, don’t be surprised if half these other projects suddenly jump to the front of the queue. Otherwise, temper your expectations and remember: in Star Wars, as in life, nothing’s certain until the lights go down and the crawl starts rolling.