Steven Soderbergh Opens Up About Cancelled Ben Solo Project

Steven Soderbergh is speaking out about his cancelled Adam Driver-starring Star Wars movie The Hunt for Ben Solo. In an interview with BK Mag, the filmmaker said “it was no surprise” to read Kathleen Kennedy’s Lucasfilm exit interview and hear her mention frustration over Disney’s decision to pass on a follow-up film to The Rise of Skywalker, which would have brought back Kylo Ren/Ben Solo.

“We were all frustrated,” Soderbergh said. “You know, that was two and a half years of free work for me and Adam and [writer] Rebecca Blunt. When Adam and I discussed him talking about it publicly, I said, ‘Look, do not editorialize or speculate about the why. Just say what happened, because all we know is what happened.’ The stated reason was, ‘We don’t think Ben Solo could be alive.’ And that was all we were told. And so, there’s nothing to do about it, you know, except move on.”

He continued, “I’d kind of made the movie in my head and just felt bad that nobody else was going to get to see it. 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.”

Adam Driver has also spoken about the film. “We presented the script to Lucasfilm. They loved the idea,” Driver said. “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.”

Driver’s revelation famously ignited Star Wars fans on social media into pushing for Disney execs to change their mind and put The Hunt for Ben Solo back on track. Some Star Wars fans even paid for a plane to fly a “Save The Hunt for Ben Solo” banner over Walt Disney Studios.