Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss will no longer helm the first film in an upcoming Star Wars trilogy.
The pair have cited a $200 million USD deal with Netflix as the reason for backing out of the project, which was slated to debut in December 2022.
"There are only so many hours in the day, and we felt we could not do justice to both Star Wars and our Netflix projects," the pair said in a statement to Deadline. "So we are regretfully stepping away."
"We love Star Wars," they added. "When George Lucas built it, he built us too. Getting to talk about Star Wars with him and the current Star Wars team was the thrill of a lifetime, and we will always be indebted to the saga that changed everything."
Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy also released a statement. It reads, "David Benioff and Dan Weiss are incredible storytellers. We hope to include them in the journey forward when they are able to step away from their busy schedule to focus on Star Wars."
Benioff and Weiss's involvement in the film trilogy — which would stand separately from the franchise's main storyline — was first announced back in April.
The decision was met with vitriol from fans in the midst of the disappointing final season of Game of Thrones, who petitioned to get the GoT showrunners removed from the project.
It's unclear what will happen with the trilogy that Benioff and Weiss were working on, though there are plenty of other Star Wars projects in the works to follow Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, which hits theatres on December 20.
The pair have cited a $200 million USD deal with Netflix as the reason for backing out of the project, which was slated to debut in December 2022.
"There are only so many hours in the day, and we felt we could not do justice to both Star Wars and our Netflix projects," the pair said in a statement to Deadline. "So we are regretfully stepping away."
"We love Star Wars," they added. "When George Lucas built it, he built us too. Getting to talk about Star Wars with him and the current Star Wars team was the thrill of a lifetime, and we will always be indebted to the saga that changed everything."
Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy also released a statement. It reads, "David Benioff and Dan Weiss are incredible storytellers. We hope to include them in the journey forward when they are able to step away from their busy schedule to focus on Star Wars."
Benioff and Weiss's involvement in the film trilogy — which would stand separately from the franchise's main storyline — was first announced back in April.
The decision was met with vitriol from fans in the midst of the disappointing final season of Game of Thrones, who petitioned to get the GoT showrunners removed from the project.
It's unclear what will happen with the trilogy that Benioff and Weiss were working on, though there are plenty of other Star Wars projects in the works to follow Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, which hits theatres on December 20.
