Star Wars: Starfighter touched down at D23 on Friday night, as Disney showed off first footage from the film during its Entertainment Showcase.
Ryan Gosling and newcomer Flynn Gray lead the latest Star Wars entry, a stand-alone movie that is set after the events of 2019’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
Director Shawn Levy appeared at the event, telling the room of fans that the project “embodies themes of hope and family and adventure” that the Star Wars franchise is known for, but “in a timeline never explored.” He then trolled Gosling with a clip from The Mickey Mouse Club (where Gosling got his start), before bringing out his star, declaring it was the most pivotal role of his career.
Gosling then appeared in a Mickey jacket, declaring, “I owe a lot to Disney… and I’m now here 30 years later and I’m back and it’s changing my life again.” He then switched jackets to feature one with the logo of his character Kade, who he described as “a guy from the wrong side of the galaxy whose fate is intertwined with the fastest starfighter ever built.” Then he teased to the audience, “Can we show you something?” and cut to a glimpse of the movie.
In the clip, Gray is shown uncovering a ship as Gosling stumbles him, saying, “Didn’t I tell you not to touch anything?” He says the ship is the fastest starfighter ever built and when Gray’s character says he’s never heard of it, Gosling says “There’s a reason for that.” The interaction was followed by some action-packed scenes of ships sailing across the sea and classic Star Wars moments in space.
Levy directed the project, which features a star-studded supporting cast of Matt Smith, Mia Goth, Aaron Pierre, Simon Bird, Jamael Westman, Daniel Ings and Amy Adams. Starfighter is set to hit theaters on May 28, 2027, after it wrapped filming at the end of 2025.
“The reality is that this script is just so good. It has such a great story with great and original characters,” Gosling told the audience when the film was first announced at Star Wars Celebration in Tokyo. “It’s filled with so much heart and adventure, and there just really is not a more perfect filmmaker for this particular story than Shawn.”
Starfighter is also the first of two high-profile collaborations coming from Gosling and Levy, as Marvel revealed during its Comic-Con presentation last month that the Barbie star would play supernatural horror hero Ghost Rider, in a new big-screen incarnation of the character. Levy will also direct the Ghost Rider film, which is currently set for a 2028 release.
