Starfighter Director Shawn Levy Signs a New Overall Deal With Disney
Disney has signed Shawn Levy and 21 Laps Entertainment to a multiyear television deal as Levy prepares Star Wars: Starfighter. The agreement does not announce another Star Wars project, but it makes his broader relationship with Disney significantly more durable.
Quick read: Disney confirmed a multiyear overall television deal with Shawn Levy and 21 Laps Entertainment. Levy is already directing Star Wars: Starfighter, due May 28, 2027, but the new pact itself is for television development and does not confirm a second Lucasfilm assignment.
What Disney confirmed
The Walt Disney Company announced on September 28 that Shawn Levy and his production company, 21 Laps Entertainment, have signed a new multiyear overall deal with 20th Television. Under the agreement, Levy will develop and produce television series across Disney Entertainment’s portfolio of platforms and brands.
The announcement matters to Star Wars because Levy is currently one of Lucasfilm’s most prominent theatrical filmmakers. He is directing Star Wars: Starfighter, the Ryan Gosling-led feature scheduled for May 28, 2027. Disney specifically cited Starfighter while describing its expanding relationship with Levy.
Variety reports that the television pact follows nearly a decade of Levy and 21 Laps working under an overall deal at Netflix. The trade says the Disney arrangement begins in October 2027. Levy will still continue some existing collaboration connected to the Stranger Things franchise.
The boundary around the news is important. Disney’s announcement does not say Levy has signed an overall film deal, does not announce another Star Wars movie or series for him, and does not alter Starfighter’s announced release date. Any claim that the pact guarantees a larger Lucasfilm role would go beyond what Disney has confirmed.
Why it is still relevant to Lucasfilm
Major franchise filmmaking depends on relationships that extend beyond a single production. Studios repeatedly work with creators who understand their production systems, executives, schedules, and franchise expectations. Levy’s new agreement is centered on television, but it places 21 Laps more firmly inside Disney’s corporate production network at the same time Starfighter is becoming his first Star Wars feature.
That does not make future Star Wars work inevitable. It does make Levy’s Disney relationship more institutional than a one-film arrangement. If Starfighter succeeds, Disney and Levy will already have a continuing business relationship through another part of the company.
Source trail
What this report is based on
- The Walt Disney Company: Shawn Levy Inks New Overall Television Deal with Disney ↗Official September 28 announcement confirming the multiyear 20th Television deal and identifying Starfighter among Levy’s current Disney projects.
- Variety: Shawn Levy Enters Disney Overall Deal After Nearly a Decade at Netflix ↗Trade reporting on the move from Levy’s long-running Netflix relationship to Disney and the timing of the new pact.
- StarWars.com: Star Wars: Starfighter ↗Official Lucasfilm film page for Starfighter and its announced theatrical release.
IDS labels unconfirmed information explicitly and updates stories when official information materially changes the status.