Adam Driver Confirms Disney Rejected Steven Soderbergh’s STAR WARS Spinoff THE HUNT FOR BEN SOLO
Adam Driver recently confirmed that Disney passed on a Ben Solo spinoff movie that he pitched and developed with director Steven Soderbergh. The project, titled The Hunt for Ben Solo, could’ve given fans the redemption story for the character, but it never got past Disney’s higher-ups.
During an interview with AP to promote Jim Jarmusch’s Father Mother Sister Brother, Driver revealed that he and Soderbergh spent two years developing a Star Wars film that Lucasfilm reportedly loved, only for Disney executives to shut it down.
The actor described the project as, “one of the coolest (expletive) scripts I had ever been a part of.”
According to Driver, the roadblock came from the very top:
“We presented the script to Lucasfilm. They loved the idea. 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… It was called The Hunt for Ben Solo and it was really cool. But it is no more, so I can finally talk about it.”
I guess I’m not surprised that Disney passed on a Steven Soderbergh-directed Ben Solo redemption story. That’s up there with the biggest missed opportunities in the franchise’s long list of canceled projects.
Driver was genuinely interested and axcited about coming back. He added:
“I always was interested in doing another Star Wars. I had been talking about doing another one since 2021. Kathleen (Kennedy) had reached out. I always said: With a great director and a great story, I’d be there in a second. I loved that character and loved playing him.”
Soderbergh echoed the disappointment, saying:
“I really enjoyed making the movie in my head. I’m just sorry the fans won’t get to see it.”
The idea of Soderbergh bringing his sharp, cerebral style to a galaxy far, far away sounds like something that could’ve reinvigorated Star Wars storytelling. It’s kinda frustrating, that the project never got a chance to be developed.
Disney might not want any negative headlines as it ushers in a new era of Star Wars, but turning down a project that had both Adam Driver and Steven Soderbergh onboard feels like a big missed opportunity. Considering how divisive The Rise of Skywalker was, a film exploring Ben Solo’s redemption could’ve given fans some closure.
But, The Hunt for Ben Solo joins the long list of “what could’ve been” stories in the Star Wars universe, and some fans are upset about the missed opportunity for this.