It's been nearly three years since Kathleen Kennedy announced that a spinoff series centered on Lando Calrissian is in development. However, updates surrounding the Star Wars project have remained scarce until this month when writer Justin Simien said he was unsure whether or not the show is still happening.
Well, it turns out that Lando is finally back on track but it appears that Simien won't be penning its script after all.
Ex-Lando Writer Justin Simien is Convinced Major Production Studios Have an Issue with his Race and Sexuality
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, the Haunted Mansion director offered quite an unconfident response regarding the show's true status, thinking he's still attached to the project despite not hearing from Lucasfilm since Lando's official announcement in 2020.
In the interview, Simien, who's a gay man of color shockingly aired his grievances toward production studios and how he thinks he's being sidelined for his race and sexuality. He said: "I am attached, I think, but I don’t really know. (Laughs.) The last thing I was told was that they [Lucasfilm] loved it but needed to put a pin in it until they could figure out everybody’s availability."
Simien added: "I haven’t investigated further, but I’m not an idiot. I’m not alone in that experience. But I can’t help but wonder, “Am I too Black? Am I too queer? And people just don’t want to say that?” Because it seems like I develop things with these companies and they just never happen for reasons unknown."
Interestingly, a report from Above the Line, written by scooper Jeff Sneider states that Simien has exited the project and is now replaced by Donald and Stephen Glover. The trade claims that Simien hasn't been attached to the project since last Summer, saying that he chose to direct his focus to Haunted Mansion.
It's worth noting that Simien's THR interview and Sneider's bombshell news came out on the same they which naturally caused confusion within the fandom. It's safe to say though that the update we got from the writer came in first before Above the Line's exposé.
Also Read: Lando: Lucasfilm Has Apparently Given Up on Donald Glover Series
As it stands, the official release window for Lando has yet to be confirmed.
Explore new topics and discover content that's right for you!