Kathleen Kennedy Defends Herself After Disastrous Tenure At Disney

Reports broke recently that Kathleen Kennedy, the long-time head of Lucasfilm, home of "Star Wars" and "Indiana Jones," would be leaving the company.

READ: Kathleen Kennedy Leaving Lucasfilm, Ending Disastrous 'Star Wars' Tenure

The news was greeted with celebration by most fans of both franchises, as Kennedy's tenure was an unmitigated disaster, creatively and economically. Two of the most iconic intellectual properties in the entertainment industry, both in disarray after years of poor creative leadership.

But Kennedy's time running Lucasfilm into the ground may not be over as quickly as it appeared to be just a few days ago. In a new interview with a friendly reporter at Deadline who somehow found a way to celebrate her "accomplishments," Kennedy pushed back on talk that she'd be leaving soon. Or that her time at Lucasfilm was a failure, marred by politics and ill-advised projects.

Kathleen Kennedy at the 39th Annual American Society of Cinematographers Awards held at The Beverly Hilton on February 23, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Alberto Rodriguez/Variety via Getty Images)

Kathleen Kennedy Reality Denial Continues

The Deadline interview starts with an absurd defense of Kennedy's tenure, setting the tone for a puff piece on one of the industry's biggest disasters.

"Kennedy would seem an unlikely target for ire in good times or bad: 13 years into her run steering Lucasfilm, she has done much with the challenge of trying to broaden George Lucas’ Star Wars vision after Disney bought it from him for $4 billion in cash and stock in 2012," the author writes.

He continues, describing her as "arguably is the most successful female producer/executive in Hollywood history."

She then denied that she's leaving Lucasfilm anytime soon, saying: "So I’m continuing to stay at Lucasfilm and looking very thoughtfully with Bob (Iger) and Alan (Bergman) as to who’s stepping in. So that is all underway, and we have every right to make that announcement when we want to make it."

Kennedy also referenced the "successes" of modern "Star Wars," including projects like "The Mandalorian," and "Andor." And that's about it. She also highlighted the fact that their development process is "scrutinized" and criticized.

"What’s troubling and frustrating is that our development gets scrutinized, and I don’t know any other production company where their development gets scrutinized like that," Kennedy said.

That's what happens when you run one of the most beloved properties in film history into the ground. And make no mistake, that's exactly what she's done.

"Star Wars" as a brand could not be in worse shape. The last of the main, core "Star Wars" films was a commercial and critical failure, one that took in roughly half of the international box office of "The Force Awakens," despite releasing years later and presenting the conclusion of the story.

"The Mandalorian" has lost much of its initial hype, "Obi-Wan" was mostly ignored, "Solo: A Star Wars Story" was likely the first film in the entire Star Wars universe to lose money, and "The Acolyte" was a politically-motivated embarrassment, canceled after just one poorly-watched season.

Kennedy in the interview touts the many directors and writers she's working with, only there's precious little actually happening in development, and given her track record, zero direction or overarching story organization behind it. Her legacy is throwing anything at the wall to see what sticks, and inserting female characters clearly designed in her own image into every possible project. Including "Indiana Jones," yet another commercial flop. Turns out, putting out poor products gest you poor results.

She can defend herself all she wants, but her record speaks for itself. And it's extraordinarily bad.