Star Wars Celebration: ‘Star Wars: Visions’ Reveals Season 3 Release Date, ‘The Ninth Jedi’ Standalone Series

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Originally planned to merely pass through, Ronin – the ex-Sith Lord from the initial season of the animated anthology Star Wars: Visions – is set to make a comeback in the third season of the Lucasfilm series on Disney+, premiering on October 29 this year.

At the Star Wars Celebration event held in Tokyo, during a panel focused on the beloved series, James Waugh, producer of Visions, announced that three highly-acclaimed storylines from the initial season – “The Duel”, “The Village Bride” and “The Ninth Jedi” – will be expanded upon in the forthcoming third installment of episodes.

Waugh unveiled an exciting new path for the series, Visions, with the debut of the Star Wars: Visions Presents title. He explained that this change would allow filmmakers to explore richer and extended narratives, free from the limitations of shorter episode lengths typical in Visions. The initial project under this new format will be a separate spin-off series titled “The Ninth Jedi,” set for release in 2026.

“In upcoming anime projects, ‘The Duel: Payback’ will be led by Takanobu Mizuno from Kamikaze Douga, while Hitoshi Haga of Kinema Citrus will take charge of ‘The Lost Ones,’ a sequel to ‘The Village Bride.’ Lastly, Naoyoshi Shiotani from Production IG will direct the followup to ‘The Ninth Jedi’ titled ‘Child of Hope.’ These talented directors shared insights about their episodes and unveiled designs for new characters, causing quite a stir among the audience, particularly with an intriguing four-legged AT-AT structure adorned with a Japanese building that drew excited gasps.

The Ronin character from “The Duel” has garnered considerable appeal among global “Star Wars” enthusiasts, sparking the creation of statues and even a figure in Hasbro’s Black Series line.

At that panel, I got a peek at an adorably cute new character from Kinema Citrus’ “Yuko’s Treasure,” their take on the Star Wars universe. In this episode, our young heroine will be joined by a big, teddy bear-like droid who has a microwave tucked in his belly! The moment they showed a sneak peek of this character during the convention, there were cheers all around.

Hiroyasu Kobayashi from Project Studio Q delved into the grittier, mechanical setting of his piece “The Song of Four Wings,” using the four blades of an X-Wing as its main inspiration.
“As a studio that excels in mechanism design, we put great emphasis on capturing the core of Joe Johnston’s original designs and incorporated plenty of droids and mechanized characters,” he shared, presenting a snapshot reminiscent of an anime version of an AT-AT walker.

Basically, Waugh explained that the idea for ‘Visions’ originated from a deep-seated love for animated storytelling. Being particularly impressed by the skillful craftsmen who create captivating tales through animation, they decided to honor this art form. As discussions progressed about how best to pay tribute, the concept of focusing on anime emerged, with a goal of highlighting Japanese culture within ‘Star Wars’ and showcasing its impact on the franchise overall.

In 2021, Lucasfilm made an innovative move by introducing “Visions” – a series of non-canon animated shorts from various Japanese animation studios. Each short showcased unique animation styles, offering diverse, fantastical reinterpretations of the Star Wars universe that resonated strongly with both fans and critics.

The initial installment of the series “Visions” made its premiere on Disney+ in September 2021. This season consisted of nine episodes, each contributed by renowned Japanese animation studios such as Kamikaze Douga, Studio Colorido, Geno Studio, Trigger, Kinema Citrus, Production I.G., and Science Saru. The first volume has been warmly received by critics, earning a 98% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an 81% score on Metacritic.

In May 2023, the second installment of “Visions” was made available on Disney+. This volume showcased productions from an assortment of international studios, such as Aardman (UK), El Guiri (Spain), Cartoon Saloon (Ireland), Punkrobot (Chile), Studio Mir (South Korea), Studio La Cachette (France), 88 Pictures (India), D’art Shtajio (Japan), Lucasfilm (US), and Triggerfish (South Africa/Ireland). Critics widely acclaimed this volume, giving it a perfect 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and an 88% on Metacritic.

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2025-04-20 09:24