Adam Driver Says 'The Ship Has Sailed' on Hunt for Ben Solo

Adam Driver said on The Rich Eisen Show that he believes his time as Kylo Ren / Ben Solo in the “Star Wars” films is finished and that the proposed standalone movie “The Hunt for Ben Solo” is unlikely to return. Asked whether he would play the character again, Driver answered, “Yeah, it’s over… No more ‘Star Wars,’” according to Variety, TheWrap and other outlets covering the Nov. 4, 2026, interview.

“We tried to do one more,” Driver said of the abandoned project, “but they’re like, ‘No, he’s dead,’” referring to Disney studio executives’ response after Ben Solo’s death in 2019’s “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” Variety and TheWrap reported. Pressed on whether the studio could still revive the film, Driver said, “If they wanted to, fine. But we’re not… It’s not our call,” adding, “I think the ship has sailed though,” according to Variety, GamesRadar+ and The Playlist.

Driver appeared on the show while promoting his upcoming film “Paper Tiger,” which premiered earlier this year at the Cannes Film Festival, TheWrap reported. The conversation turned to “Star Wars” when host Rich Eisen asked about a possible return to the franchise.

Years of development, then a studio no

Driver said he and filmmaker Steven Soderbergh spent years developing the Kylo Ren standalone, working “really and earnestly for two years” on a completed screenplay with Scott Burns and Rebecca Blunt. “We got a script together that was really good,” Driver said. “We all worked on it… It was awesome. It was really cool. But you know, I don’t get to decide,” according to Variety, GamesRadar+ and Dark Horizons.

TheWrap and ComingSoon.net identified the writing team as including Scott Z. Burns and Jules Asner, who has written under the name Rebecca Blunt. Multiple reports said Soderbergh was attached to direct. Driver told Eisen that Lucasfilm “loved the idea” when the script was presented, Variety reported, recounting that the team then took the project to Disney CEO Bob Iger and studio executive Alan Bergman, who declined.

“They didn’t see how Ben Solo was alive. And that was that,” Driver said in comments Variety attributed to his earlier account of the rejection. The Playlist, which first reported details of the project’s collapse in October 2025, said Lucasfilm — including then-president Kathleen Kennedy — had supported an internal green light before Iger and Bergman pulled the plug. GamesRadar+ described the pitch as a “handmade and character-driven” story that Lucasfilm backed before Disney’s top executives turned it down.

Fan campaigns and what Driver will not share

Driver said the fan response after news of the cancellation became public was “pretty incredible.” “I didn’t expect that it was going to be billboards and people flying planes over Disney and things like that. That was pretty cool,” he told Eisen, according to Variety, TheWrap, GamesRadar+ and ComingSoon.net. Variety noted that fans previously paid for a plane to fly a banner reading “Save The Hunt for Ben Solo” over Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California; ComingSoon.net also cited a Times Square billboard among the fan efforts.

Asked on the Eisen show whether he would finally describe what he and Soderbergh had planned for Ben Solo’s return, Driver declined. “No, I think I’ll just keep that to myself,” he said, The Playlist reported.

Soderbergh struck a similar note in an April interview with The Playlist. Asked whether leadership changes at Disney or Lucasfilm might lead him to revisit the idea, he answered “Nope,” adding, “Look, if it was gonna happen, it would have happened… It’s that simple.” Soderbergh said the collaboration began because Driver believed there was “still somewhere to go with this character,” and that he did not regret the unpaid development time. Dark Horizons reported that “Star Wars” chief creative officer Dave Filoni said in August the project was not moving forward.

What comes next on screen

Driver’s sequel-trilogy run as Kylo Ren spanned “The Force Awakens,” “The Last Jedi” and “The Rise of Skywalker,” where Ben Solo dies after a redemption arc. The canceled “Hunt for Ben Solo” would have continued that story after Episode IX, according to coverage from TheWrap, ComicBook.com and The Playlist.

Theatrical “Star Wars” plans highlighted in the same reports include “Star Wars: Starfighter,” directed by Shawn Levy and starring Ryan Gosling, scheduled for May 28, 2027, TheWrap and ComingSoon.net reported. GamesRadar+ also pointed to “Ahsoka” season 2 arriving on Disney+ in January as part of the franchise’s near-term slate. Driver’s comments on Eisen’s show did not announce any new “Star Wars” role for him and framed the Ben Solo feature as a closed chapter from his perspective.

Disney and Lucasfilm did not issue a fresh public statement tied to Driver’s Nov. 4 remarks in the outlets reviewed for this report. Driver’s available comments leave open only the formal possibility that the companies could change course, while stating his view that “the ship has sailed.”

Sources

• Variety: Adam Driver Says ‘The Ship Has Sailed’ on ‘The Hunt for Ben Solo’
• TheWrap: Adam Driver Says ‘The Hunt for Ben Solo’ Is Dead Despite ‘Incredible’ Fan Support
• GamesRadar+: Adam Driver says Hunt for Ben Solo script was “really good” but “ship has sailed”
• The Playlist: Adam Driver Says ‘The Hunt For Ben Solo’ Has Likely Missed Its Chance
• ComingSoon.net: Canceled Kylo Ren Movie Gets Clear Verdict From Adam Driver
• Dark Horizons: Driver Talks The “Hunt for Ben Solo” Reaction
• ComicBook.com: Adam Driver on Star Wars Future: “It’s Over”