Kathleen Kennedy is stepping down from her role as the head of Lucasfilm after over 13 years, marking the end of an era for the “Star Wars” franchise originally launched by George Lucas.

The Walt Disney Company revealed on Thursday that Dave Filoni will take on the responsibility of guiding “Star Wars” into its next chapter, as the franchise enters its sixth decade. Joining him in this leadership role is Lynwen Brennan, who serves as the president and general manager of Lucasfilm. Together, they will manage one of the most iconic names in cinema.

Handpicked by Lucas himself, Kennedy has been at the forefront of the “Star Wars” galaxy since Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm in 2012. Her tenure included overseeing a period of both commercial success and fan controversy, producing a new trilogy of films and successful streaming series like “The Mandalorian” and “Andor.” Despite these achievements, she faced challenges in satisfying the franchise’s loyal fanbase.

During Kennedy’s leadership, Lucasfilm generated over $5.6 billion at the box office and played a key role in establishing Disney+ as a major streaming platform, justifying Disney’s $4.05 billion investment in the company. However, recapturing the cinematic magic of the original “Star Wars” trilogy proved elusive, and her rapport with fans often became a story in itself.

In their new roles, Filoni and Brennan will share leadership duties, with Brennan focusing more on financial operations. Filoni, known for his creative vision, has predominantly worked in television, gaining recognition with projects like the animated “Star Wars: The Clone Wars.” He recently contributed to Disney+ series such as “Ahsoka,” “The Mandalorian,” “The Book of Boba Fett,” and “Skeleton Crew,” showcasing his strong ties to the “Star Wars” universe.

Before joining Lucasfilm, Kennedy was one of Hollywood’s most successful producers ever. In 1981, she co-founded Amblin Entertainment with Steven Spielberg and her eventual husband, Frank Marshall. She produced “E.T.,” “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” “Jurassic Park” and the “Back to the Future” trilogy.

At Lucasfilm, her biggest hit came at the start, with 2015’s “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.” The J.J. Abrams-directed film grossed more than $2 billion worldwide. But the subsequent installment, Rian Johnson’s “The Last Jedi” (2017), was bitterly divisive. The third film, Abrams’ “The Rise of Skywalker” (2019), was widely panned by critics and fans, alike.

After “The Rise of Skywalker,” “Star Wars” went dark on the big screen despite a litany of announced projects. The dry spell is set to be broken in May by Jon Favreau’s “The Mandalorian & Grogu.” The intervening years have been marked by streaming successes in “The Mandalorian” and “Andor,” but the future of “Star Wars” has felt increasingly uncertain.

Struggles over tone and vision have been frequent. The 2018 Han Solo spinoff “Solo: A Star Wars Story” saw its directors, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, fired during production and replaced by Ron Howard. Most found the mixed-and-matched result blandly disappointing.

More recently, Adam Driver, who played Kylo Ren/Ben Solo in the most recent “Star Wars” trilogy,” divulged to The Associated Press last year that he and Steven Soderbergh had developed a Ben Solo film with Kennedy and Lucasfilm’s support for two years before Disney chief Bob Iger nixed it. Fans were so irate that a plane was flown over Disney’s Burbank studios with a banner reading “Save ‘The Hunt for Ben Solo.’”

Instead, the only “Star Wars” movie of Kennedy’s stewardship to win widespread and prevailing approval from fans was arguably 2016’s “Rogue One.” Gareth Edwards’ spinoff was also a troubled production, leading to Tony Gilroy, eventual creator of “Andor,” overseeing reshoots. Yet despite that, “Rogue One” — taking place within “Star Wars” but outside of the main Jedi storyline — might be the only film of Kennedy’s “Star Wars” reign that managed to both stay true to the space odyssey’s tone and to break new ground.