Lucasfilm once handed Paddington 2 collaborators Paul King and Simon Farnaby a trip to a galaxy far, far away. Their idea centered on a robot, avoided the saga's best-known characters, and never made it beyond development. The useful twist is that the robot is not dead: Disney suggested removing the Star Wars connection, and the pair are now rebuilding it as an original science-fiction film.
What happened to the Star Wars robot movie?
Farnaby revealed the project in a new Variety profile. After Paddington 2, Disney and Lucasfilm approached King and Farnaby about a Star Wars film that King would direct and the pair would write. Farnaby said their pitch revolved around a robot and did not use any of the franchise's key characters.
The idea never reached the point where Lucasfilm announced a title, cast, release date, or production schedule. Farnaby acknowledged that the team never fully cracked the story, while Lucasfilm wanted the concept to feel more clearly like a Star Wars movie.
This was not an announced film that disappeared from a release calendar. It was an unmade development project that Lucasfilm chose not to move forward, which makes it different from a movie canceled after a public reveal.
Why did Lucasfilm pass?
Farnaby connected the decision to two things: the robot-first idea did not involve the main Star Wars characters, and the team never found the final version of the story. Lucasfilm has told successful stories around new characters before, so the absence of Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, or another familiar face was probably not the only issue. The confirmed answer is narrower: the pitch never became the kind of Star Wars movie the studio wanted.
There is no detailed studio postmortem, and Farnaby did not reveal the robot's design, personality, time period, or place in the wider timeline. Any claim that the project was about a specific droid, era, or known character would be guesswork.
The robot idea is still alive
The most surprising part of the story comes after Lucasfilm said no. Farnaby said Disney encouraged them to reshape the robot concept as a standalone science-fiction film. He confirmed that they are now working on that version.
That gives the project a rare second life. Without Star Wars continuity, the filmmakers can build their own world, history, and rules around the robot instead of fitting the idea into decades of canon. It may also be easier for the movie to keep the odd, warm sense of humor that runs through King and Farnaby's best work.
