What happened to the Boba Fett movie?

Boba Fett has been one of the greatest Star Wars characters of all time. He was once the mysterious bounty hunter seen in Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back and Episode VI – Return of the Jedi. And while he was more of the silent type, the mystique of his character and bad*ss Mandalorian armor had a lasting impression on fans for decades.

In the prequels, we even got to see a young Boba Fett and his father that he was cloned from, Jango Fett. That gave us just a little bit more on-screen time with Boba until many years later when we would see him again on season 2 of The Mandalorian, played by Jango Fett actor Temuera Morrison.

The bounty hunter was first teased very briefly in season 1. Then, he finally revealed himself to Din Djarin in the following season, bringing along new companion Fennec Shand with him. So, with Boba Fett being so popular, naturally, there have always been rumors about Boba Fett getting his own movie. And in 2018, that was certainly going to be the case, with Lucasfilm set on bringing the character to the big screen. Now, of course, that has come to a halt — but what happened?

Why is there no Boba Fett movie?

Back in October 2018, Variety reported that plans for a Boba Fett movie had officially been canceled by Lucasfilm. They wrote that in May, the plans had become public. It would be directed by Logan director James Mangold. But within less than a year, those dreams had been turned down. So, what gives?

While it was never said officially, the biggest reason behind this was likely the pivot from movies to TV series on streaming networks. At that time, it was publically known that The Mandalorian was in the works and would be arriving on the soon-to-come Disney+ streaming service a year later.

What may have happened behind the scenes was Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni shaping out their new Mandalorian shared universe. And we know now that the universe includes shows like Ahsoka, Rangers of the New Republic… and The Book of Boba Fett. But up until the season 2 finale of The Mandalorian, the Boba Fett spinoff was a big secret. (Well, aside from the rumors and leaks ahead of season 2 that said there would be a new Boba Fett spinoff coming to Disney+.)

All in all, it looks like one idea was simply swapped for another. And what a good treat as well. Getting a limited series will give us much more time to spend with Boba Fett compared to a 2-hour movie!

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