Star Wars confirmed its next Disney+ series will debut next week, and the first look at it was released outside of the streaming service. Since Disney acquired the rights to Star Wars, the company has released numerous series for Disney+, some sensational and others dismal. However, the latest series, Maul: Lord of Shadows, was excellent, leaving fans eagerly awaiting the next one. They won't have to wait long, as Lucasfilm's next series is just around the corner.
We're talking about Star Wars: Visions Presents — The Ninth Jedi, the first full-length film sequel to the acclaimed anime anthology Star Wars: Visions. Production IG, the studio behind the original short film, returns to expand on one of the anthology's most beloved installments and turn it into a longer story.
Lucasfilm and Production IG will screen the first episode of Ninth Jedi at Anime Expo 2026 in Los Angeles on Thursday, July 2, the convention's opening day. The presentation will take place in the Diamond Ballroom of the JW Marriott Hotel from 6:00 PM to 7:20 PM local time. The screening will also include a panel discussion featuring the series' creative team.
Fans in attendance will get to see the opening sequence before anyone else, before the full series launches on Disney+ this summer. This also means the first real footage from one of this year's most anticipated Star Wars projects will be shown at Anime Expo, not in trailer form.
«"The Ninth Jedi" continues the story that began as a short story in the first volume of Star Wars: Visions in 2021 and continued in the third volume, "The Ninth Jedi: Child of Hope." The plot centers on Cara, a Force-sensitive young woman who searches for her lightsaber-smith father while working to restore the Jedi Order.
The story takes place in the distant future, long after The Rise of Skywalker, in an era when lightsabers and the Jedi have all but disappeared from the galaxy. Lucasfilm first unveiled the project at Star Wars Celebration Japan in 2025 and has not yet set a precise release date for streaming platforms after the summer. However, the Disney+ release date will likely be announced at Anime Expo.
«"The Ninth Jedi" is one of several reasons why the coming months look promising for Star Wars. Following "The Ninth Jedi," several highly anticipated Disney+ projects and feature films will be released, and they're packed with exciting elements.
Lucasfilm's slate of upcoming Star Wars projects is impressive, and for good reason.
Content beyond the sequel trilogy
Shawn Levy's Star Wars: Starfighter will take the franchise to a whole new level. Set approximately five years after The Rise of Skywalker, the film is the first Star Wars film to break away from the sequel trilogy. Levy describes it as a standalone adventure, not a sequel or a prequel, featuring mostly new characters and a few returning familiar faces.
Ryan Gosling leads a team that also includes Flynn Gray, Matt Smith, Mia Goth, Amy Adams, and Aaron Pierre. Filming wrapped in December 2025, and the film is set for release on May 28, 2027. For much of the past decade, Lucasfilm has focused on the same eras, so a move into new territory seems urgently needed. Simon Kinberg's trilogy, announced by former Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy before leaving office, will also likely provide Star Wars fans with more unique content beyond the sequels.
All the Might of Thrawn
Grand Admiral Thrawn quietly returned to the main galaxy in the final moments of Ahsoka's first season, and the second season seems poised to unleash him. For much of the first season, he remained a distant threat, appearing onscreen only toward the end. The second season should finally showcase his full power.
Series creator Dave Filoni wrote all eight episodes and hinted at a major naval battle pitting Thrawn against Admiral Ackbar. This season also devotes more screen time to Ezra Bridger, who returns to the New Republic to deal with the aftermath of Thrawn's escape, and Anakin Skywalker, whose role takes on a more significant role this time around. Disney confirmed at its Upfronts 2026 presentation that the second season of Ahsoka will premiere in early 2027.
The Arrival of Darth Talon
The first season of Maul: Lord of Shadows concluded in May with a Jedi Padawan's first true step toward the dark side. Devon Isara, a red-skinned Twi'lek voiced by Gideon Adlon, agreed to train with Maul after Darth Vader killed her master, and in the finale, she captured half of Maul's red lightsaber.
Fans have long predicted that this storyline would serve as the backstory for Darth Talon, the Sith Lord from Star Wars: Legends. The name also harks back to George Lucas's scrapped plans for a prequel trilogy, where Maul ruled as a crime lord with a Twi'lek apprentice named Talon. The name hasn't been mentioned in the series, and supervising director Brad Rau has been evasive in answering questions about fan theories. Sam Witwer and Lucasfilm have confirmed a second season, expected in 2027, which is when Devon's character is expected to be fully fleshed out.