Acclaimed Director Shawn Levy Helms Highly Anticipated Star Wars Film

Shawn Levy, the acclaimed director behind recent hits like Deadpool and Wolverine, is set to take on a new challenge – helming a standalone Star Wars film. Levy, who has long considered the iconic franchise a "defining influence" on his filmmaking sensibility, is currently on a break from shooting the highly anticipated project.

The director's previous work, the 2022 sci-fi actioner The Adam Project, featured several nods to the Star Wars universe, including a scene reminiscent of the speeder chase on Endor from Return of the Jedi. Levy also pointed out that the film's finale battle sequences involved a staff that was "a little bit like a lightsaber."

Now, Levy has the opportunity to create an entirely new and original Star Wars story, neither a sequel nor a prequel to anything that has come before. Collaborating with writer Jonathan Tropper, the director is thrilled to be working on this "dream-come-true" project, which will star Ryan Gosling, Flynn Gray, Matt Smith, and a host of other talented actors.

As Levy bids farewell to his work on the hit series Stranger Things, where he has served as an executive producer and frequent director, he acknowledges that this departure is different from any other he has experienced. The show, he says, has "impacted culture in a way that is so ubiquitous and durable," and its legacy will undoubtedly continue to inspire and captivate audiences for years to come.