As Slashfilm reports, there have been a couple of shakeups at Lucasfilm Animation. First came news that Star Wars Rebels showrunner Dave Filoni was stepping away from the show, leading to panic from fans. But, as it turns out, Filoni has actually been promoted and will now oversee creative development for all Lucasfilm Animation projects, including continued input on Rebels. However, Justin Ridge, who has previously directed episodes of the show as well as The Clone Wars, will now take over the supervising director job on Rebels.
In a statement, LucasFilm said:
“Dave is still just as involved as ever – overseeing all aspects of Star Wars Rebels production as Executive Producer and occasionally directing episodes. In many ways, mentoring Justin and moving him into the role as Supervising Director has made it possible for Dave to be even more immersed in the writing and story structure of the show as well as creatively overseeing future animation development. Justin started with Lucasfilm Animation on the first season of Star Wars: The Clone Wars and worked with Dave before that on Avatar: The Last Airbender, so they’ve been working together for quite some time.”
Meanwhile, Star Wars Rebels season three kicked off last week on Disney XD.