Kylo Ren lives... in the minds of fans, who want to see his solo movie get made. In October, the Star Wars fandom was sent into a frenzy when Adam Driver revealed he, alongside director Steven Soderbergh, had developed a standalone movie for his character, Ben Solo. The film, titled The Hunt for Ben Solo, was set to take place after the events of 2019's The Rise of Skywalker, in which the former Kylo Ren died.
Driver spoke highly of the project, and stated Lucasfilm was interested in making it. Higher-ups at Disney, however, were not as excited about the project, and it was ultimately shelved. Upon the news htting, Star Wars faithfuls quickly launched a hefty fan campaign to sway Disney into making The Hunt for Ben Solo a reality. One of the biggest stunts to revive the project came in the form of a banner, made to be flown over Disney Studios in late October.
That, though, was not the end of the plane-based campaign. According to Collider, yet another banner has been flown over Disney Burbank in California. The message?:
"SHAREHOLDERS WANT THE HUNT FOR BEN SOLO."
The fervor for the movie has been even bigger, however. As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, people have been posting "missing" flyers of Adam Driver as Kylo Ren with the hashtag #THEHUNTFORBENSOLO.
On top of that, a group of fans rallied outside Disney's New York headquarters for the studio to revive the movie. Speaking to Collider, the fan in charge of organizing the rally stated:
"Ultimately, the legacy of Star Wars has always been hope, and today we carried that hope. Death robs redemption of accountability. Bring back Ben Solo. For the Skywalkers. For the Sequels. For Star Wars."
Furthermore, an impassioned fan went as far as to rent a billboard in Times Square, which read: "For Adam. No one's ever really gone. Hope lives. Ben is alive! #THBS." Speaking to Collider, the person who rented the billboard, B.D. Neagle, explained her reasoning behind the surprising display:
"I'm just a fan who thought Ben's story wasn't finished. I wanted to do what I could to support the fandom and everyone attached to The Hunt for Ben Solo. The intent was to show Disney this is what fans actually want. 'No one’s ever really gone' I believe, says it all. If they could bring back Palpatine with one line, there are plenty of ways Ben could return that already fit into Star Wars lore."
Neagle went on to explain that the efforts behind trying to make this film happen stem from The Hunt for Ben Solo having a finished script:
"What makes this fight for Ben Solo different is that we know a finished script exists. There was a director attached, and Adam Driver himself had been looking for a way to tell Ben's story. It's no longer simply wanting a character to return. It’s about fighting for a story that was ready to be told. We know it's out there, and because of that, we're not giving up. We want Disney to know they made a mistake. It’s not often the Star Wars fandom agrees and that alone should tell them something. Ben Solo/Kylo Ren is so popular that fan fiction based on his relationship with Rey has become New York Times best sellers, leading to movie deals. I'm not sure they understand the power this character has."
As it turns out, The Hunt for Ben Solo was not just a script. It was, in fact, pretty far along in development. Shortly after the film was revealed, The Playlist stated that the movie had been greenlit before getting canceled. The project was so far along in development, that it had been assigned a code name (a proper practice for projects expected to enter production)—Quiet Leaves—and was in the process of hiring staff. Furthermore, the site reported Disney had bought the treatment and beat sheet from Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Jules Asner a.k.a. Rebecca Blunt (Logan Lucky).
Now, realistically speaking, the odds of the fan campaign nudging Disney to make the project are slim. Though the voices amplifying the fan campaign are making enough noise, the number of people actually clamoring for a Ben Solo movie may be too small to justify a multi-million dollar production.
Of course, one could argue that, with Star Wars' brand power, a Ben Solo film has a good chance at being profitable simply because of being part of the Galaxy Far, Far Away. Regardless, though, the film was canceled after being seen by Disney higher-ups, so, as exciting as it sounds, it will likely remain just an exciting idea in the Star Wars universe.
The next film in the Star Wars saga, The Mandalorian and Grogu, hits theaters on May 22, 2026.
What do you think about this new fan campaign for The Hunt for Ben Solo? Would you like it for the film to get made? Drop your thoughts in the comments!