On December 10th, Disney created a buzz with a variety of announcements (and 'variety' is putting it lightly).
The media giant has plans for 10 Star Wars series, 10 Marvel series, 15 series under Disney or Pixar’s umbrellas, and 15 Disney or Pixar movies– and that’s just cracking the surface!
Keep scrolling to learn more about the future of Disney's enormous sci-fi and fantasy properties — and to get a first look at the new series and movies!
Star Wars Series
Star Wars, Star Wars, and more Star Wars.
In the coming years, Disney has set their sights on creating and releasing a staggering list of new Star Wars content.
Disney has announced that production on the live-action Disney+ series Obi Wan Kenobi will start this coming March. Ewan McGregor will play the titular part, while Hayden Christensen will reprise his infamous role as Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker. In a press release, Christensen said
Of course, Anakin and Obi-Wan weren’t on the greatest of terms when we last saw them… It will be interesting to see what an amazing director like Deborah Chow has in store for us all. I’m excited to work with Ewan again. It feels good to be back.
Recognizing the success of The Mandalorian, Disney also announced two spinoff series, Rangers of the New Republic and Ahsoka, the latter of which will feature Rosario Dawson reprising her role as Ahsoka Tano.
The two spinoff series are estimated to arrive on Disney+ next winter, and will set the stage for an exciting crossover between the trio of related shows.
Related: 11 Adventure Books Like The Mandalorian to Show You the Way
Disney also announced the new series Andor, which will center around Rogue One’s Cassian Andor.
The 12-episode series is a prequel to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and will star Diego Luna. Andor is scheduled to hit streaming on Disney+ in 2022.
Watch the sizzle reel for Andor below!
In Lando, a new project Disney is referring to as an “event series,” the rascal Lando Calrissian will take center stage.
Though the series is just in its beginning phases of development and specifics are sparse, the titular character offers boundless potential for a series of his own.
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Diverging somewhat from the rest of the adventure series, The Acolyte is a new mystery thriller series. Set against the backdrop of the fleeting days of the High Republic, The Acolyte will feature dark powers, deception, and secrets in a unique story within the Star Wars universe.
Building from the storyline of The Clone Wars, the new animated series The Bad Batch will follow the four infamous clones of Clone Force 99, as they put their talents to the test in dangerous new missions.
Set between Clone Wars and Rebels, The Bad Batch, depicted in the video below, is expected to arrive to streaming in 2021.
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Watch the sizzle reel for The Bad Batch below!
And don’t worry, your favorite droids are also getting their due in another animated series set to debut on Disney+.
R2-D2 and C-3PO will come together in A Droid Story to guide a new member of the Star Wars family.
Reinvigorating the franchise, Disney is also pursuing a new twist on their usual work. Star Wars: Visions promises an anthology of ten anime shorts that build on all there is to love about the franchise.
Related: Ralph McQuarrie: The Artist Who Made Star Wars Shine
Star Wars Movies
In addition to a cornucopia of new series, Star Wars fans also have new movie prospects to look forward to.
An untitled film from Academy Award winner Taika Waititi is in development, in addition to Rogue Squadron.
The latter film is scheduled for release in 2023, and will center on an elite flight squadron and all of their high-octane and death defying thrills. Director Patty Jenkins, who previously directed Wonder Woman, discusses the personal significance of this movie in the video below.
Watch Patty Jenkins tease Rogue Squadron!
Marvel Series
Ten new Marvel series are also on their way to Disney+, and Disney dropped a bunch of new trailers to give fans an inside glimpse of what’s to come.
Disney released a new trailer for the sitccom with a spin, WandaVision, which arrives on Disney+ January 15th.
The series centers on the Scarlet Witch, Wanda Maximoff, and her husband Vision in a fun and freaky new addition to the Marvel Universe.
Watch the trailer for WandaVision below!
Disney also released the trailer for the much-anticipated The Falcon and the Winter Soldier that is scheduled to hit streaming in March of 2021.
Set after Avengers: Endgame, the six-part series follows Sam Wilson, The Falcon, as he takes up the mantle of Captain America, with the help of Bucky Barnes.
The new series will also feature Helmut Zemo, Georges Batroc and Sharon Carter joining the cast of characters.
Watch the trailer for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier below!
Set for release in May of 2021, Loki will give the frequent villain within the Marvel Universe a series of his own.
Packed with action and dubbed a “crime-thriller,” Loki stars Tom Hiddleston.
Watch the trailer for Loki below!
But wait, the new trailers don’t stop there. The trailer below for What If?, an animated Marvel series, was also released yesterday.
Watch the sizzle reel for What If below!
Other noteworthy Marvel developments include the news that the series Hawkeye will come out on Disney+ in the fall of this coming year.
2021 will also see the release of the series Ironheart, which will center on engineering genius Riri Williams; Armour Wars, which will dive into Ironman’s deepest fears with Colonel James Rhodes back in the mix; and Secret Invasion, which will follow the SHIELD gang, with some favorites like Samuel L. Jackson and Ben Mendelsohn returning for the show.
Guardians of the Galaxy will also gets its day in the sun. Multiple projects are planned for the hilarious outer space adventurers. Not only is the third volume set to be released in 2023, but an earlier holiday special is scheduled for 2022, and a series of shorts featuring the lovable tree-of-few-words, Groot, will make up the series I Am Groot.
Related: 8 Space Opera Books Like Guardians of the Galaxy
A newly released a sizzle video for Ms. Marvel also gives audiences a chance to learn more about the increasingly popular Marvel character, who will appear in both the Marvel series, Ms. Marvel, and Captain Marvel 2.
Watch the sizzle reel for Ms. Marvel below!
Marvel Movie News
In terms of Marvel movies – it’s official. A third Ant-Man movie is in the early stages of development.
Titled Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, the new film will feature Kang the Conqueror as the movie's main villain..
Alien Series
A new series based on Alien, from Noah Hawley, the showrunner behind Fargo and Legion, will make its way to FX and Hulu.
Remake of Willow
Willow is being remade into a series scheduled to come out in 2022.
The series is directed by Ron Howard, and will bring back Warwick Davis, who starred in the 1988 film version.
[Via: Theverge.com and Usatoday.com]
Featured still from "The Mandalorian" via Lucasfilm / Disney
