Director Jon Favreau to helm new live-action Star Wars series

Director Jon Favreau, best known for his work on Marvel Studios’ Iron Man and Disney’s The Jungle Book, will helm the new Star Wars live-action television series coming to Disney’s streaming service. Lucasfilm announced Favreau’s involvement — he’ll write and executive produce the show — in the Star Wars series today.

“I couldn’t be more excited about Jon coming on board to produce and write for the new direct-to-consumer platform,” said Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy in a statement. “Jon brings the perfect mix of producing and writing talent, combined with a fluency in the Star Wars universe. This series will allow Jon the chance to work with a diverse group of writers and directors and give Lucasfilm the opportunity to build a robust talent base.”

While he has an established relationship with Disney, thanks to his work on Iron Man, The Avengers and The Jungle Book, Favreau also has history with Star Wars. He appeared in the animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars series and will appear in Solo: A Star Wars Story as the voice of an “important alien.” Favreau’s next project is The Lion King for Disney.

Disney and Lucasfilm have not announced a date for the new Star Wars live-action series.

Disney announced in February that it had “multiple” Star Wars projects in development for its stand-alone streaming service, which is expected to launch sometime in late 2019. The company hasn’t announced pricing details for its streaming service yet, but it’s expected to cost significantly less than Netflix’s standard $10.99-per-month subscription.

It’s been a busy few months for the Star Wars brand. Lucasfilm announced in November that a new trilogy of films are in the works from Star Wars: The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson, and recently revealed a separate series of films from Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. The next Star Wars movie, Solo: A Star Wars Story, hits movie theaters on May 25.