Director Shawn Levy is offering new insight into Star Wars: Starfighter, the upcoming science-fiction adventure starring Ryan Gosling as a pilot named Kade Auberon. Levy has shared a new tease about the film, emphasising his enthusiasm for the franchise and explaining that his approach to directing major cinematic universes begins with being a genuine fan of the stories and characters.
“When I was interviewed by People on Oct. 12, Levy also joked that he was working on a “small little niche art film called Star Wars.” “I think there’s just a familiarity for me since I’ve been connected to their worlds so long, and I kind of consider myself coming at both Marvel and Star Wars as a fan making a film, ” he said.
Star Wars: Starfighter sees Gosling in the role of Kade Auberon, a cynical pilot who is haunted by his past and inadvertently embroiled in a perilous quest. The film follows the character and a young boy (Flynn Gray) on a mission of urgent importance through the galaxy.
During his appearance at Disney’s D23 event in August 2026, Gosling described Kade as someone from the wrong side of the galaxy whose fate becomes connected to the fastest starfighter ever built. The panel also showed exclusive footage of the character discovering a young man interacting with a decommissioned spacecraft before embarking on an action-filled journey through alien landscapes.
The film was established as a standalone story with new characters instead of another direct sequel to focus on the Skywalkers. The story takes place roughly five years after the events of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, so the filmmakers had a degree of flexibility with where they could take the franchise.
Levy has previously helmed movies like Free Guy and Deadpool & Wolverine and he also directs Netflix series Stranger Things. As well as a record-breaking track record for spectacle, Levy has further excellence in melding humour and a focus on characters.
Starfighter is an opportunity to take audiences into a time in the Star Wars galaxy that hasn’t been explored before in a feature-film adventure, said the director. As in previous Star Wars episodes, the audience can expect elements of hope, family, and destiny to be part of the story, with a new cast and new timeline.
Levy has previously called Gosling “a kind of unusually engaged partner in the creative process, ” adding that he is not only performing in the movie but is also an executive producer, “offering ideas and thoughts on how the movie looks on the screen.”
Joining Gosling and Gray in the film are Matt Smith, Mia Goth, Aaron Pierre, Jamael Westman, Daniel Ings and Amy Adams. Jonathan Tropper is the screenwriter for the movie. Levy and Kathleen Kennedy are set to be producers.
Aside from revealing the basic plot and footage to the public at D23, Lucasfilm has kept a lot of the details of the story under wraps. The marketing for the movie has first and foremost been centered around the characters and the fast-paced space action and the relationship between Kade and the child he has been given to protect.
