Why The Next Star Wars Trilogy Has Us Seriously Worried

At the moment, it's kind of official: Simon Kinberg has signed with Lucasfilms to produce a new trilogy of "Star Wars" films. But is it really going to happen? Let's just say there are a few reasons why we're worried it won't.

But first, what exactly are these films going to entail? Early rumblings said that it's going to consist of episodes 10-12 of The Skywalker Saga — which means it would continue the narrative that was explored in the last official trio of films that ended with 2019's "The Rise of Skywalker." However, subsequent information indicates that Kinberg is actually working on an entirely new storyline.

It's hard to say which option we're more excited about. If Kinberg ends up continuing The Skywalker Saga, we'll almost definitely get to see more of Rey — which would be great since pretty much everyone fell in love with her over the course of the latest film trilogy. On the other hand, a whole new narrative with an all-new cast of characters is equally — if not more — intriguing. There's nothing better than a mostly clean slate — especially when people had plenty of criticisms for the last trilogy as a whole.

At this point, you might be asking yourself, "Uh ... who's Simon Kinberg?" While you might not know his name off the top of your head, you definitely know most, if not all, of the many projects he's worked on in the past. As far as "Star Wars" installments are concerned, he co-created "Star Wars Rebels" — the animated show that ran from 2014 to 2018 — and acted as a consultant on "Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens." In the Marvel realm, Kinberg spent years playing an integral role in the production of numerous "X-Men" films; he most recently acted as an executive producer for the incredibly successful "Deadpool and Wolverine."

Beyond his work on those blockbuster franchises, Kinberg produced Ridley Scott's adaptation of "The Martian," scripted the cheesy but charming blockbuster "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," and co-wrote the first installment of the Robert Downey Jr.-led "Sherlock Holmes" franchise, just to name a few of his accolades. However you may feel about these particular projects, you can't deny that the guy has the chops to take a swing at some fresh "Star Wars" material.

As of this writing, Lucasfilm and Disney have yet to make any public comments about how set in stone this new trilogy actually is. And, honestly, that's the real reason we're worried about Kinberg's vision actually making it to theaters.

"Star Wars" fans know the franchise's history is absolutely riddled with half-baked projects that never came to fruition. Remember how George Lucas had actually planned to make the original prequel movies in the early '80s? Or what about Colin Trevorrow's "Episode IX: Duel of the Fates," which was ultimately canceled in 2017? Around that same time, the studio even shot down a proposed Guillermo del Toro installment that would have been called "The Rise and Fall of Jabba the Hutt." It's painful to even think about how cool that one would have been, right? Keep in mind, those are just a few of the many "Star Wars" projects that were eventually canned after being announced — which is why we don't really have our hopes up for this new Kinberg deal.

Now, don't get us wrong! We're not saying that we don't want it to happen. We think we're speaking for a lot of people when we say that we truly hope this not only kills at the box office but also satisfies old and new fans alike in a major way. Despite a long and troubled history of various disappointments — whether it be a poorly executed film or a weak TV series — "Star Wars" fans are some of the most loyal and optimistic people out there. No matter how something turns out in the end, they tend to show up to give it a chance first. Here's hoping that Kinberg gets a real shot at pushing the beloved franchise into new and exciting territory. We're certainly here for it. How about you?