Star Wars fans criticize character reuse

Star Wars fans spent May 19 through May 21 criticizing what they described as Lucasfilm’s continued return to familiar characters and storylines, with several X posts arguing that new projects remain too tied to the Skywalker era. The complaints centered on characters including Maul, Ahsoka, Anakin and Rey, and on projects fans said still lean on legacy connections rather than unexplored parts of the franchise. The criticism surfaced as Lucasfilm heads into a theatrical release for *The Mandalorian and Grogu* on May 22 and continues work on *Star Wars: Starfighter*, a Ryan Gosling-led film due in 2027. Official announcements for both projects show Lucasfilm balancing new titles with characters and timelines already known to fans. ### Which projects were fans pointing to? An X post cited in the source briefing pointed to *Starfighter* and “Mando and Grogu” while arguing that Star Wars keeps circling back to the same themes and figures. The same cluster of posts, dated May 19 to May 21, called for stories set in new timelines and in less-explored parts of the galaxy rather than another return to Skywalker-linked arcs. (starwars.com) Lucasfilm has publicly positioned *Starfighter* as a new story, but not one disconnected from existing chronology. The Walt Disney Company said on August 28, 2025 that the film is “an all-new standalone adventure” and “an entirely original story set in a period of time never before explored in Star Wars.” Variety reported when the project was unveiled in Tokyo on April 17, 2025 that the film is set roughly five years after *The Rise of Skywalker*. (thewaltdisneycompany.com) ### Why are fans connecting “new” films to old saga complaints? Variety reported that *Starfighter* follows the events of *The Rise of Skywalker*, which ended the Skywalker saga in the film timeline. That placement appears to be part of what some fans are reacting to: even when Lucasfilm introduces new leads, the projects can still be framed in relation to the same saga-era endpoint. (thewaltdisneycompany.com) StarWars.com also shows how much of Lucasfilm’s near-term slate still features established names. The site says *The Mandalorian and Grogu* opens May 22, 2026, says *Ahsoka* season 2 is due in 2027, and says *Maul - Shadow Lord* is already streaming on Disney+. Those titles do not by themselves confirm the fan criticism, but they show why viewers discussing reuse would point to Maul, Ahsoka and Mando-related stories at the same time. (variety.com) That is an inference based on Lucasfilm’s current release lineup and the posts described in the briefing. ### What has Lucasfilm actually said about Starfighter? Shawn Levy said in Disney’s August 28, 2025 announcement that Kathleen Kennedy invited him to develop “an original adventure” in the Star Wars galaxy. Disney’s release also said the film had begun production and would star Ryan Gosling alongside Flynn Gray, Matt Smith, Mia Goth, Aaron Pierre, Simon Bird, Jamael Westman, Daniel Ings and Amy Adams. (starwars.com) Ryan Gosling told fans at Star Wars Celebration in Tokyo in April 2025 that “the force is the fans,” according to Variety’s report from the event. Levy said at the same presentation, “We’re fans too,” as Lucasfilm introduced the project as a standalone film. ### How does Mando and Grogu fit into the backlash? (thewaltdisneycompany.com) StarWars.com says *The Mandalorian and Grogu* “returns to the big screen” on May 22, 2026 and has heavily promoted the film through clips, cast features and fan events. The project extends characters first established in the Disney+ series rather than launching a separate era of the franchise. The fan criticism in the briefing singled out “Mando and Grogu” as another example of Lucasfilm relying on familiar figures. (variety.com) That complaint arrived just as the film moved into release, making it part of the wider online conversation around whether Star Wars is expanding its universe or continuing to mine the same set of characters. ### What happens next? May 22, 2026 is the next concrete date in the franchise calendar: *The Mandalorian and Grogu* opens in theaters and IMAX, according to StarWars.com. (starwars.com) May 28, 2027 is the announced release date for *Star Wars: Starfighter*, according to Disney and Variety, with Ryan Gosling attached to star and Shawn Levy directing.