Disney has named Dave Filoni, a protégé of “Star Wars” creator George Lucas and the co-creator of “Star Wars” streaming TV series “The Mandalorian,” president and chief creative officer of Lucasfilm. He will work alongside co-president Lynwen Brennan, who runs the studio’s business operations.

Filoni, 51, will now steer one of the highest-grossing movie franchises in history as well as live-action and animated TV shows.

Kathleen Kennedy has run Lucasfilm since Disney bought it in 2012. She will become a full-time producer. REUTERS

The 72-year-old Kennedy, who has run Lucasfilm since Disney bought it in 2012, oversaw three blockbuster sequels to the original “Star Wars” trilogy and the successful spinoff “Rogue One.”

“It has been a true privilege to spend more than a decade working alongside the extraordinary talent at Lucasfilm,” Kennedy said in a statement.

The 2018 film “Solo,” which introduced a new actor as the smuggler made famous by Harrison Ford, flopped in theaters.

Disney put the “Star Wars” movies on hiatus in 2019 to focus on live-action TV series, including “The Mandalorian” starring Pedro Pascal and the popular character Baby Yoda.

George Lucas hand-picked Kennedy as his successor to lead Lucasfilm. Getty Images for Disney

Disney scrapped planned “Star Wars” films from directors Patty Jenkins and Rian Johnson as Kennedy worked to reset the film strategy.

Filoni, meanwhile, oversaw many popular and acclaimed TV series including “The Mandalorian” and “Ahsoka.”

Both Kennedy and Filoni worked with Lucas, the creator of the original “Star Wars” film series that debuted in 1977. The franchise, about a group of rebels in a galaxy far, far away, has brought in more than $10.3 billion at global box office receipts, according to Comscore.

Dave Filoni is a protégé of “Star Wars” creator George Lucas and the co-creator of “Star Wars” streaming TV series “The Mandalorian. REUTERS

Lucas hand-picked Kennedy as his successor to lead Lucasfilm. The five films she oversaw brought in a combined $5.9 billion. The most successful, 2015’s “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” surpassed $2 billion in worldwide ticket sales.

Lucasfilm expanded into producing live-action streaming TV series under Kennedy, including Filoni’s “The Mandalorian,” which debuted with the launch of the Disney+ streaming service in 2019. Other series included “Ahsoka” and “Andor.”

The company also added “Star Wars”-themed lands at Walt Disney World in Florida and at Disneyland in California.

Kennedy and Filoni at a fan convention last year. AP

In 2005, Lucas hired Filoni to help build a “Star Wars” animation studio. Filoni, often spotted at Hollywood premieres and fan events wearing a cowboy hat, helped create the animated TV series “The Clone Wars.”

“The Mandalorian” will head to the big screen in May in a film co-written by Filoni called “The Mandalorian and Grogu.” The movie “Star Wars: Starfighter,” featuring Ryan Gosling, is scheduled to reach cinemas in May 2027. Kennedy will continue to work as a producer of those films.

Daisy Ridley, star of the sequel trilogy that began in 2015, also has said she is returning to a new “Star Wars” project.

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Banijay Group (Banijay) is responsible for the Cillian Murphy-led gangster show, alongside other television brands like Big Brother and Masterchef.

Now the production company is entering into the entertainment and gambling sector with a deal to take the majority of CVC Capital Partners VII’s stake in Tipico Group (Tipico) and to create a whole new entity, Banijay Gaming.

CVC announces Banijay gambling deal

CVC published a press statement about the billion-dollar deal to move its lion’s share in Tipico to Banijay. The deal, according to CVC, will also see the creation of a “European champion in sports betting and online gaming.”

This is in reference to the finer points of the deal, where the French company Betclic and the existing shares of Tipico will merge to create a new entity, Banijay Gaming.

A statement by Tipico explained the deal as “Banijay Group will buy the major stake of CVC in Tipico in cash, and all shareholders of Betclic and Tipico, including the respective founders, will become shareholders of the combined entity.”

The Tipico release suggests that Banijay will double its expected revenue by bringing these two betting companies together. The deal would mean that Banijay Gaming would have an audience of “almost 6.5m unique active players annually, operate more than 1,250 betting shops in Germany and Austria and employ 5,300 employees.”

Tipico merges in bid to become European betting powerhouse

CEO of Banijay Group, François Riahi, said of the merger, “I am particularly pleased to see that Tipico founders have decided to partner with us to build a new European leader in the sports betting business, rolling over all their stake in Tipico into Banijay Gaming, which is fully consistent with our DNA to gather strong entrepreneurs for the long term and a testimony to their trust in the future value creation.”

Banijay a racheté Tipico

“En rachetant Tipico, on double de taille dans le domaine du pari sportif. On devient le leader d’Europe continentale sur ce métier.”

François Riahi, directeur général de Banijay Group
Sandra Gandouin pic.twitter.com/6KU3s3VBiy

— BFM Business (@bfmbusiness) October 29, 2025

Speaking on BFMTV, he later added: “By acquiring Tipico, we are doubling our size in the sports betting sector. We are becoming the leader in continental Europe in this business.”

Around 64.9% of the combined entity will be owned by Banijay, with 35.1% being shared out amongst the partners in the deal (Tipico founders, CVC, Nicolas Béraud, and Tipico managers).

The deal in its entirety is projected to close in mid-2026 after the regulatory eyes, legal red tape, and other control measures are taken into account.

Featured Image: Tipico / Banijay

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