Star Wars: Starfighter director Shawn Levy says he was "forced to come up with a new idea" for the film's third act and it's "so much better than the original idea would have been"

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Star Wars: Starfighter director Shawn Levy says he was "forced to come up with a new idea" for the film's third act and it's "so much better than the original idea would have been" News By Mireia Mullor published 28 November 2025

The upcoming film stars Ryan Gosling and Flynn Gray

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(Image credit: Shawn Levy)

Star Wars: Starfighter director Shawn Levy has just revealed the film's third act will look very different from their initial plans, as the whole ending was entirely reworked ahead of filming. However, he thinks the change has been for the better.

During his recent appearance on the podcast On Film... With Kevin McCarthy, the director said there has been "something unexpected" on most of his movies, and his Star Wars film starring Ryan Gosling was no different.

"On Starfighter it was – we had a whole different idea for something in the third act and then things didn't align and I was forced to come up with a new idea. And I'm literally right now shooting that section of the movie. And everyday I'm grateful that the way I was supposed to do it didn't work out, because the new idea that it forced me to explore is so much better than the original idea would have been."

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Levy, who has worked on big-budget projects like Marvel's Deadpool and Wolverine and Netflix's Stranger Things season 5, said this movie "feels different" because it's Star Wars. "It's harder, and a more unique pressure than any other movie you can make. Because you go into it understanding how deeply emotional the connection with audiences is. You could argue that's true of Marvel, that's true of other franchises, but nothing is as religious an allegiance as Star Wars. And so, the need, the pressure, self-inflicted mostly, to get it right, that's intense," he said on the podcast.

"The first few weeks of shooting, it felt like this oppressive sort of cloud over me, because everyday they would come to me," he continued. "It's a hundred questions a day. And especially Starfighter, it's not a sequel, it's not a prequel, it's not legacy characters. And it's not in a period of time in the galaxy that's ever been explored…What this means is that we are inventing everything in the movie. And the desire to make design choices, character choices, planet choices, costume choices, droid choices, alien choices, all of it needs to feel Star Wars-y."

In the same interview, Levy revealed that his biggest inspiration for Starfighter was Return of the Jedi.

Star Wars: Starfighter is heading to cinemas on May 28, 2027. While we wait, stay up to date on all the upcoming Star Wars movies and shows that are currently in the works, and dig into our list of the best Star Wars movies, ranked.

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Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. TOPICS Lucasfilm Disney CATEGORIES Star Wars Movies Mireia MullorContributing Writer

Mireia is a UK-based culture journalist and critic. She previously worked as Deputy Movies Editor at Digital Spy, and her work as a freelance writer has appeared in WeLoveCinema and Spanish magazines Fotogramas, Esquire, and Elle. She is also a published author, having written a book about Studio Ghibli's 'Kiki's Delivery Service' in 2023. Talking about anime and musicals is the best way to grab her attention.

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