Shawn Levy Says STAR WARS: STARFIGHTER’s Entire Third Act Was Rebuilt and It Ended Up “So Much Better”

Shawn Levy is deep into filming Star Wars: Starfighter, and it turns out the movie we’ll see in 2027 is not the version he first mapped out. In fact, the entire third act was reimagined right before cameras rolled, and the director is thrilled about it.

During an appearance on the podcast On Film... With Kevin McCarthy, Levy explained that unexpected shake ups have been a pattern throughout his career and his new Star Wars adventure with Ryan Gosling followed suit.

“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.”

For a filmmaker who has already tackled massive franchises from Deadpool & Wolverine to Stranger Things, Levy says Star Wars carries an entirely different weight. The pressure is unlike anything he has experienced.

He explained, “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.”

The early days on set were especially tough. Levy described an overwhelming rush of questions that hammered him day after day while building a film that has no familiar timeline or legacy characters to lean on.

“The first few weeks of shooting, it felt like this oppressive sort of cloud over me, because everyday they would come to me. 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.”

While Levy didn’t spill specifics about the story, he did reveal that the movie draws its biggest inspiration from Return of the Jedi, which hints at the tone he is aiming for. It sounds like he wants a movie that feels classic, warm and adventurous, something fans can latch onto even as he introduces brand new corners of the galaxy.

I’m excited about Star Wars: Starfighter and we’ll see how it all comes together when the film hits theaters on May 28, 2027.