After Ryan Gosling's space odyssey Project Hail Mary became a blockbuster hit at the global box office, the actor will be leading another interstellar adventure, and this time in the Star Wars universe.
Gosling delivered what critics are calling a career-best performance in Project Hail Mary, the sci-fi epic that premiered last month. The film, directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller and based on Andy Weir's 2021 novel, tells the story of a science teacher who awakens on a spacecraft with no memory of how he arrived there only to discover he's on a mission to save humanity from extinction.
Now, Gosling is set to lead Star Wars: Starfighter, a standalone film directed by Shawn Levy that will hit theaters on May 28, 2027. The project marks a return to space for the actor who has already proven he can carry ambitious sci-fi spectacles.
The big picture details
Development on the film accelerated in January 2025 when Gosling entered talks to star, with Levy postponing other projects to move forward with the Star Wars film first. The director was considered essential to Disney after the massive success of Deadpool & Wolverine.
The film is set approximately five years after Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and will feature an entirely original story in a period never before explored in Star Wars. Unlike many recent Star Wars projects that have leaned heavily on legacy characters and nostalgia, Starfighter promises fresh territory.
The impressive ensemble cast
The cast includes newcomer Flynn Gray as Gosling's character's nephew, along with Matt Smith and Mia Goth as antagonists, and Amy Adams as the mother of Gray's character. Additional cast members include Aaron Pierre, Simon Bird, Jamael Westman and Daniel Ings.
Levy revealed a first look at the film in fall 2025, showing Gosling and Gray in battered clothing on some sort of watercraft, with the photo tagged in Sardinia, Italy.
Interestingly, Smith was originally cast in The Rise of Skywalker but didn't appear in that film, making Starfighter what Levy calls "destiny fulfilled" for the actor's entry into the franchise.
The behind the scenes
Filming took place in the United Kingdom beginning in August 2025, with the script written by Jonathan Tropper. Production wrapped in mid-December 2025 after approximately four months of principal photography with director Shawn Levy announcing on Instagram, "That's a wrap! Headed into #Starfighter post-production like…" alongside a black-and-white photo of himself running on a wall.
The relatively swift production timeline gives the team about 17 months for post-production.
In a surprising cameo, Tom Cruise visited the set and served as a camera operator for a lightsaber duel set in a boggy marsh.
Thomas Newman is composing the score with Levy wanting the music to be "big-hearted," "classically inspired" and use multiple musical themes similar to John Williams's work, but not be a "remix" of Williams's music.
The "bravest" character yet
In an interview with MovieWeb during the "Project Hail Mary" press tour, Gosling was asked to rank his characters across three sci-fi films —Ryland Grace from Project Hail Mary, Officer K from Blade Runner 2049, and his unnamed Starfighter character—in terms of being the coolest, bravest and smartest.
His answer provided a very interesting glimpse into what audiences can expect: "I think Grace is the coolest," Gosling said. "And then I'll say my character from Star Wars is maybe the bravest, and maybe smartest goes to Blade Runner."
The description of his Starfighter character as "the bravest" has fueled fan speculation about what kind of high-stakes heroics Gosling will perform in the film.
Starfighter follows The Mandalorian and Grogu’s theatrical release this May. The 2026 releases will mark seven years since the last Star Wars film hit theaters, The Rise of Skywalker in 2019.
Lucasfilm has several other Star Wars projects in various stages of development including a film from director James Mangold exploring the origins of the Jedi and Simon Kinberg's trilogy set after The Rise of Skywalker. However, Starfighter is notable for being one of the few with a confirmed release date and completed production.
With production wrapped and post-production underway, Star Wars: Starfighter is expected to be one of 2027's most anticipated releases. If Gosling can bring even a fraction of the charm, wit and emotional depth he displayed in Project Hail Mary, the Force will be very strong with this one.
Project Hail Mary reads:
Add us as a preferred source on Google