‘Star Wars’ fans campaign to save scrapped sequel ‘The Hunt for Ben Solo’

Star Wars fans have begun a high-profile campaign to save the scrapped the rejected sequel that would bring back the character of Ben Solo.

Last week (October 21), Adam Driver made headlines after revealing in an interview that he and director Steven Soderbergh had written and pitched a new film in the Star Wars Universe, titled The Hunt For Ben Solo. The story would have brought his character Ben Solo, aka Kylo Ren, back from the dead. 

“I always was interested in doing another Star Wars,” he told Associated Press. “I had been talking about doing another one since 2021.” He called it “one of the coolest (expletive) scripts I had ever been a part of” and said that Lucasfilm were excited about the project, but ultimately executives at parent company Disney turned it down. “They didn’t see how Ben Solo was alive. And that was that” he explained.

Now, fans who want to see that project make it to the big screen have devised ways of getting their message heard. On October 23, Collider reported that a plane had been flying over Disney Studios in California with a banner reading: “Save #TheHuntForBenSolo”.

Two days later, the outlet also revealed that a billboard had been purchased on Time Square, displaying a sign in the signature Star Wars font that said: “For Adam. No one’s ever really gone. Hope lives. Ben is alive! #THBS”. Pictures of both have circulated on social media.

a plane in the sky & a billboard in times square, we’re serious about getting ben solo back #TheHuntForBenSolo pic.twitter.com/XhXAAx0dqy

— biscooti🍪 (@adamdriverss) October 25, 2025

The fan who purchased the billboard, B.D. Neagle, told the website: “I’m just a fan who thought Ben’s story wasn’t finished. I wanted to do what I could to support the fandom and everyone attached to The Hunt for Ben Solo.” He continued: “If they could bring back Palpatine with one line, there are plenty of ways Ben could return that already fit into Star Wars lore.”

This is not the first time the Star Wars fanbase has demanded a change in course from Disney. In 2017, a petition was started to remake The Last Jedi, the divisive second part of the sequel trilogy. The man who started the petition later admitted to regretting it.

Fans also showed their support for 2018’s Solo: A Star Wars Story, launching a #MakeSolo2Happen campaign that went viral in 2020.

In other news, Star Wars creator George Lucas led tributes to legendary Star Wars poster artist Drew Struzan, who passed away on October 14 aged 78.