After news had dropped that Patty Jenkins’ Star Wars: Rogue Squadron had been delayed indefinitely, rumors had started spreading that she had been fired over creative differences with Lucasfilm. The good news is, it looks like that won’t be the case, and Jenkins is doing a good show of her commitment to the Star Wars franchise.
Deadline reports that Jenkins has dropped out of her Cleopatra film starring Gal Gadot to focus on Wonder Woman 3 and Rogue Squadron. We don’t have any official updates on WW or RS, but it’s nice to know that Jenkins is willing to commit by dropping some other projects (unlike Taika Waititi, who seems to be saying yes to everything) to focus on her work.
Of course, this doesn’t mean the end for Cleopatra. Though Jenkins is out, the film will move along, and it’s said that The Falcon and The Winter Soldier director Kari Skogland will be taking over the helm.
We have no idea what kind of tone the film is going for, but it’s possible that it will be closer to Gladiator, what with Cleopatra’s history with Rome and its rulers.
Though Cleopatra has been portrayed famously as a historical seductress, a lot of people forget that she also had amazing political accomplishments. She was the last acting pharaoh of Egypt, and was able to speak multiple languages; and her connections allowed her to influence the Roman government; hands down the original “girl boss”. It’s such a shame that we’re not going to have Jenkins on the project given her phenomenal work on the first Wonder Woman movie. Then again, the filmmaker must need some time to focus on her main projects.
No release dates have been set for Cleopatra, Wonder Woman 3, or Rogue Squadron, but hopefully the projects won’t have any further delays down the line.
